Microsoft has denied singling out Linux as a serious threat to its Windows operating system, despite the release of a training CD for Microsoft partners on the topic.
Martin Gregory, platform value manager at Microsoft Australia, said Linux and the companies pushing Linux were “just one” of Microsoft’s competitors in the IT software market.
“We have partners who wanted answers to questions they get in the marketplace about open-source software and Linux. The CD was a way for Microsoft to give partners the tools to have informed discussions with customers,” Gregory said. “It is not unusual for Microsoft, or indeed other software vendors, to support partners this way.”
A CD entitled ‘Microsoft for Partners Sales Training--Competing with Linux’ was distributed to channel players who attended a recent Microsoft series of partner briefings around Australia.
The CD contains sections such as “What to do when you encounter a Linux solution” and “What everyone needs to know”, including paragraphs defining Linux from Microsoft’s perspective and telling partners what to say in answer to Linux-related questions from customers. Partners were also advised to “avoid initiating” conversations about open source with their customers.
“Ultimately, it is up to the partner to work with their customers to determine the best software choice. The CD was a response to a request from our partners to ensure they have the information and resources they need,” Gregory said.
In the CD’s description of the open source movement, Microsoft said: “There are strengths of the open source approach, such as its focus on connecting with customers, and Microsoft incorporates those strengths into its own software development model.
“However, Microsoft also believes that building business class software that is comprehensive, integrated and easy-to-use with a continual commitment to innovation is the strength of the commercial software approach.”
The CD continued on to say that: “In spite of a lot of favourable press, Linux is, for the most part, in the early adopter phases”.
Gregory said IDC figures showed that the real growth in Linux market share was from the UNIX install base. “There is no doubt that the trend in industry is to move towards the Intel platform,” he said.
In a “key takeaways” section of the CD, partners are told that customers think Linux is cheaper than windows. “If the topic comes up, use the three pillars to discuss the business benefits of Windows: business advantage, more value for money, and safer investment,” the CD said.
Yet US-based analyst firm Radcliff and Willison produced a report in 2002 evaluating Linux vendor strategy that stated total cost of ownership (TCO) for Linux was lower than for Windows.
The report asked whether Linux can really save money. “Linux has very low up-front costs and runs on inexpensive industry standard hardware. Capital expenditure applies to immediate budget requirements...Linux has superior long term cost savings, often referred to as Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)...Linux comes out as better no matter what model [of calculation] is used.”
Linux had 60 percent savings in TCO over Windows and an 86 percent savings over Solaris and represented a good return on investment, the Radcliff and Willison report stated.
Gregory said Microsoft had no problem with its partners selling products from different vendors. “Our aim is to assist our partners in recommending the best solutions based on factual information,” he said.
A Netcraft monitoring Web site has revealed Microsoft’s London Internet Data Centre depends heavily on Linux for delivering data, via hosting company Akamai Technologies, which uses a Linux-based caching system to deliver content. At the time of going to press, nine of the 10 Microsoft London Internet Data Centre sites with the longest uptime were running Linux.
When asked whether customers can be confident in Microsoft if even Microsoft uses Linux in some situations, Gregory said open source and Microsoft technologies were part of a “rich technology ecosystem”.
“This is a good thing for Microsoft, its partners and customers. Linux and Microsoft do not operate mutually exclusively – they are part of this ecosystem,” Gregory said.
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Source:
ITnews
