Microsoft/Novell Get Increased Demand To Maximize It

UNIX Update, July 1, 2009

As organizations of all shapes and sizes are making every possible effort to deliver greater value to their business and customers, IT managers are being required to increase the efficiency of their operational infrastructure, systems and processes. As a result, a greater number of companies are signing on for the interoperability and intellectual property (IP) peace of mind solutions offered by Novell Inc. and Microsoft Corp. through their business, legal and technical collaboration agreement.

In just the past six months, the two companies have signed more than 100 new customers, which is double the rate in the first two years of their relationship. In total, since their November 2006 collaboration agreement, the two companies have sold more than $200 million in certificates for Novell SUSE Linux Enterprise Server support and maintenance to more than 300 customers. The latest customers to sign on include companies in a broad range of industries and geographies, such as Boise Inc., Idaho Power Company, Honeywell Aerospace, La Poste, Procter & Gamble Co. (P&G), SC Johnson, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Sky TV and St. Jude Medical Center.

"In today's economic environment, when customers are looking to derive the greatest value from their IT investments, we are seeing an increased rate of demand for the interoperability solutions and IP peace of mind benefits provided by our collaboration," said Ted MacLean, general manager for Strategic Partnerships and Licensing at Microsoft. "Consistently positive feedback and sales results demonstrate that our relationship with Novell has been successful in delivering interoperability solutions that help our customers showcase the value IT contributes to their business."

"The relationship has substantially benefited Microsoft's Linux integration story and has driven Linux revenue for Novell," said analyst Jay Lyman of 451 Group. "The development and work by the two companies to improve Linux and Windows interoperability addresses the reality of mixed enterprise environments for customers, who were largely the impetus for this collaboration and are now benefiting from the resulting technology and support."

Customer Uptake of Novell's Expanded Support for Linux Distributions

Microsoft and Novell have made a number of investments to help customers derive the greatest possible value from their IT investments, including Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Subscription with Expanded Support. This package provides technical support for customers' existing Linux deployments -- including Red Hat Enterprise Linux -- while the organization transitions to Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, gaining significant cost savings and enabling the benefits of interoperability. There has been strong initial customer interest in the program since it launched in November 2008, and more than 10 percent of new customers in the past six months have signed on for this support package. One such customer is U.K.-based 2e2, one of the fastest-growing IT managed services and solutions providers in Europe.

"At 2e2, we deliver mission-critical managed outsource services, data management, software consulting and unified communications solutions to large enterprise customers that demand quality," said Ciaran Cosgrave, director of Managed Services for 2e2. "We believe that the Microsoft and Novell relationship offers a number of real commercial, legal and technical benefits to our customers, and because of this, we will be supporting the initiative across the majority of our business divisions. We are very impressed with the innovative Expanded Support program that gives customers simple access to 24x7 support, delivered through a single company, Novell, irrespective of what major Linux distribution is being run. This creates simplicity while at the same time reducing cost. 2e2, with assistance from the Microsoft and Novell relationship, is well positioned to deliver its customers the services they need, at the price they want, in these difficult economic times."

"Solutions like Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Subscription with Expanded Support allow customers to standardize and consolidate on a single, enterprise-grade Linux environment," said Susan Heystee, general manager for Strategic Alliances at Novell. "Customers get the immediate benefits of lower total cost of ownership and proven interoperability, all with the assurance of world-class support for their legacy Linux environment."

Market Growth in China and Asia Pacific Region

A specific area of focus for Novell and Microsoft has been in China and the Asia Pacific region, where the two companies made an incremental investment one year ago to help transition unsupported Linux users to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server subscribers. As more organizations in those markets seek to bridge the gap between open source and proprietary software, the Novell-Microsoft investment is paying off, evidenced by the more than 50 new customers throughout the region that have signed on for the companies' joint offering of interoperability and IP peace of mind for mixed-source IT environments.