Big Blue's linux crusade gains momentum

BANGALORE: Exactly one year after IBM top boss, Sam Palmisano''s maiden Indian visit that centred around Linux and open source computing, IBM''s Linux point man, Jims Stallings, is now on a whirlwind tour to India meeting up customers, independent software vendors (ISVs) and various governments.
Stallings is meeting the ministry of IT officials in New Delhi and several others at various state governments.The discussions are based on the compelling lower cost of computing value proposition of Linux and how it can create jobs for the young in the country.
In Karnataka, post Palmisano''s signing of MoU with the state government, several pilot projects in e-governance have been initiated.
Stallings, general manager (Linux) at IBM feels the march of Linux is unstoppable, which is marked by unbridled enthusiasm among the users. "Our Linux pitch is based on delivering lowering operating costs to the customers." He said India is a rapidly growing market for the company along with China, South Korea, Russia and Brazil.
Showing further commitment, IBM has set up a Linux centre of competency in Bangalore with two branches in New Delhi and Mumbai. The centre is set up to help customers from industry, academia and government, move to computing environment based on open standards. At the CoC, they can develop solutions from proof-of-concept stage to the production phase.
While the Bangalore centre would have general industry focus, Mumbai unit would specialise on financial and banking segment and New Delhi centre would develop solutions in e-governance space. The company has deployed a dedicated work force of 10 people to facilitate this. IBM has 20 such CoCs across the globe.
Building a Linux environment, IBM is also working closely with 40-odd ISVs in India who are developing applications in areas of banking, finance, e-governance, retail and healthcare. As incentives which ISVs would find attractive, IBM promises to bundle their solutions with its systems and services. Besides, it would help them create awareness about their products and help them in devising their ''go-to-market'' strategy.
Though IBM didn''t invent Linux, nor they distribute it, the computing giant with revenues of $89 billion is spending billions in a crusade to make Linux the world''s most popular operating system. The company has invested in two leading Linux distributors, Red Hat and SuSE. While it was an early investor in Red Hat, last year, it invested $50 million in Novell, which acquired SuSE.
IBM has built a strong force of 3,000 Linux-certified practitioners, while around 12,000 people within the company have some kind of Linux exposure.
And IBM''s ''Tux'' gambit has started delivering rich dividends to the company. Its Linux-related business grew by 50 per cent to cross $2 billion. Stallings, a former marine captain, says there have been traction from systems, software and services.
This is something Microsoft is finding tough to digest.