Microsoft, Novell Reach Accord on Linux
By ROBERT A. GUTH and DON CLARK
November 3, 2006; Page A3
Microsoft Corp. reached a rapprochement with a major seller of the Linux operating system, a deal that makes a kind of peace between two opposing camps in the software industry.
The deal with Novell Inc. is designed to make it easier for customers to use both Linux and Microsoft's Windows software. It puts new pressure on Red Hat Inc., a Linux seller whose shares were recently roiled when Oracle Corp. announced plans to offer its own technical support for Red Hat's products.
The deal effectively makes Microsoft a reseller of Suse Linux, Novell's version of the operating system, and kicks off a broad technology collaboration between the two companies. At the heart of the deal is a "patent covenant" under which Microsoft agreed not to file patent-infringement charges against users of Suse Linux, and Novell agreed not to sue users of Windows. Businesses that use Linux have long worried that Microsoft would one day file patent-infringement suits against them, thereby hindering their use of and investment in the rival software.
Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's chief executive, acknowledged at a news conference in San Francisco that Linux now plays an "important role" at many companies, along with the software titan's own products. The new deal "bridges the divide between open-source and proprietary software," he said.
The term open source refers to the ability of users to examine and modify the underlying instructions, known as source code, used to make a program. Microsoft and many other vendors typically keep such code private. Linux has been the most widely adopted open-source program, a potent competitor to Windows on server systems used to run application programs such as managing Web sites.
The Wall Street Journal broke news of the accord online yesterday. Novell shares were up 16%, or 92 cents, to $6.79 at 4 p.m. in Nasdaq Stock Market composite trading. Also on the Nasdaq, which traded broadly lower, shares of Red Hat fell 33 cents, or 2%, to $16.10; and Microsoft shares fell four cents to $28.77.
Financial terms weren't disclosed, but involve various payments between the two companies, including Microsoft's paying Novell for a minimum of roughly 70,000 "coupons" that Microsoft corporate customers can convert into annual subscriptions to receive support for Suse Linux. The value of each of those coupons varies between roughly $400 and $1,500 a year, Novell Chief Executive Ron Hovsepian said. Other payments include a "running royalty" stemming from the patent covenant that Novell will pay to Microsoft, executives at the companies said.
The companies said the set of agreements, expected to be in force until at least 2012, will include a joint research facility at which Microsoft and Novell will design and test software combinations, and work with customers and software developers to build and support those technologies. Microsoft also will recommend Novell's Suse Linux Enterprise for customers that want Windows and Linux. "We definitely want customers who chose to run both Windows and Linux to choose Novell," Mr. Ballmer said.
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The pact marks an unusual level of cooperation between two longtime rivals. Microsoft has been battling all versions of Linux but has faced pressure to assure customers can run both Windows and Linux without problems. Red Hat's Linux is the most popular commercial version of the product, followed by Suse Linux. The deal follows Oracle's announcement that it would start selling its own support for Red Hat's version of Linux, a plan that undercuts Red Hat's own business, which is based on providing support and maintenance.
Backing by Oracle, the world's second-largest software maker behind Microsoft, coupled with the Microsoft-Novell pact, could instill more confidence in businesses that have held back investment in open source, some industry experts said. Concerns over patents and general competition with Oracle and Microsoft hampered some potential users of the software, the executives say. "There were always customers that were concerned about whether there would be a backlash with Microsoft," said Stuart Cohen, chief executive of the Open Source Development Laboratory, an open-source promotion group. "They just took that off the table."
Microsoft has at times spooked the Linux community with statements that stressed it indemnifies Windows customers against claims of patent infringement. Some people in the open-source community regarded those statements as thinly veiled threats that it would eventually file patent-infringement suits against Linux users.
Microsoft's move to embrace only Novell's software could be seen by skeptics as a move to divide the Linux community. "There is bound to be some animus, just because of who Microsoft is," said Daniel Ravicher, legal director of the Software Freedom Law Center, a public-service law firm that represents open-source developers.
微软、网威就Linux达成协议
2006年11月03日11:50大 | 中 | 小
微软公司(Microsoft Corp.)与Linux操作系统的主要销售商网威公司(Novell Inc.)达成协议，软件产业曾经势不两立的两大阵营开始显露和平的曙光。
双方达成的这项协议主要目的在于让客户能够更方便地同时使用Linux和微软Windows的软件。这也给另一家Linux销售商Red Hat Inc.带来新的压力。最近Red Hat股票走势振荡，此前甲骨文公司(Oracle Corp.)宣布计划自己为Red Hat产品提供技术支持。
微软表示，将为网威版的Linux操作系统Suse Linux提供销售支持，并与网威展开技术合作。另外，微软同意不会就Suse Linux用户提起专利侵权诉讼，而网威也同意不向Windows用户提起类似的诉讼。那些使用Linux操作系统的企业长期以来一直担心微软有一天可能会对他们提起专利侵权诉讼。
微软首席执行长巴尔默(Steve Ballmer)也在一次新闻发布会上承认，如今Linux及其自己的产品在许多公司中发挥着重要的作用。双方签署的协议将弥合开放源代码软件和专利软件之间的分歧。他表示，公司在这些市场上看到了巨大的增长潜力。
Linux是应用范围最广泛的一种开放源代码软件，是Windows在服务器领域的有力竞争对手。通过与Linux的销售商合作，微软将得以打击Red Hat，并且让客户也能爱屋及乌地喜欢网威版Linux，开放源代码软件公司XenSource副总裁Frank Artale说。该公司与微软和网威都有密切的业务往来。
协议的相关财务条款未被披露。但两家公司表示，协议内容包括成立联合研究机构，共同设计和测试软件组合；与客户和软件开发公司合作、开发和支持这些技术。微软还将向那些希望使用Windows和Linux的客户推荐网威的Suse Linux Enterprise。巴尔默表示，毫无疑问，我们当然希望那些既使用Windows又使用Linux的用户选择网威。
这份协议也标志着两家宿敌之间一次非同寻常的合作。微软一直都在与各种版本的Linux操作系统进行抗争，但同时也面临着要确保客户能顺利运行这两种操作系统的压力。Red Hat的Linux是眼下应用范围最广的商业版Linux，其次就是Suse Linux。
此前甲骨文宣布称将开始自己为Red Hat版的Linux提供支持，这项计划将会削弱Red Hat技术支持和维护业务。
一些业内人士表示，甲骨文的这项举动、加上微软－网威的协议，也许能够重振那些一度减少开放源代码软件投资的企业的信心。
开放源代码初创企业SourceLabs首席执行长Byron Sebastian表示，现在的最大赢家是消费者。由于意识到开放源代码是软件行业一个重要的发展趋势，微软和甲骨文都开始改变各自的策略。
Robert A. Guth / Don Clark
