Meet Novell's new best friend: VMware
Novell has a new best friend when it comes to SUSE Linux distribution: VMware.
If you recall, Novell's former best friend for SUSE Linux was Microsoft. Microsoft and Novell have a partnership where the two parties had certificates that indemnified SUSE users from any intellectual property liability. In addition, Microsoft officially recommended SUSE Linux Enterprise for hybrid Windows/Linux shops. Microsoft also distributed coupons for maintenance and support for Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. The Microsoft-Novell partnership dates back to 2006.
Now that the sales pop from the Novell-Microsoft partnership has played out SUSE Linux growth has stagnated. In Novell's fiscal third quarter report, the company said Linux platform product revenue was US$36 million, down seven percent from a year ago. Linux invoicing was down 11 percent from a year ago. Dana Russell, Novell's chief financial officer, said "depletion of the original Microsoft certificates this year makes for a challenging year-over-year comparison". Russell did say that Linux platform invoicing was up 15 percent from a year ago if you exclude Microsoft certificates.
Read more of "Meet Novell's new best friend: VMware" at ZDNet.com.