Linux on desktop needs better sales people
By John Leyden
Published Monday 18th April 2005 16:19 GMT
Linspire chief exec Michael Robertson is visiting London on a mission
to persuade system builders that there's money to be made in Linux on
the desktop.
Robertson guesstimates that it costs PC builders £125 or more in
licensing fees to offer PCs with Windows XP and Office XP pre-
installed. Linspire's pitch is that system builders could offer
machines with equivalent functionality using Linspire 5.0, Open
Office and 12 months access to CNR (Linspire's online software
library) for £15 a pop. By reducing software costs, resellers could
offer systems at much lower cost, the pitch goes.
It's a plausible line for an assembler of cheap desktops and laptops.
But even though Linux on the desktop has become far more user
friendly over the last year or so it's yet to emerge as a mainstream
product.
Linspire currently boasts 350,000 users, half of whom pay for extra
services (such as renewal licences to CNR). "Linux on the desktop
doesn't need improved technology. We need to work on the on the
distribution channel to sell more desktops and laptops with Linux
preinstalled. The market needs profitable companies to incentivise
retailers," Robertson said.
The US is the worst market for desktop Linux, according to Robertson.
"The momentum is in Europe and South America," he said. Linspire is
represented by Phoenix Global Software in the UK.
On par with XP
Linspire has developed its OS to have file compatibility with
Microsoft formats. Microsoft has been filing patents in this area
which Robertson said could be used as a "hammer" to hit the smaller
firms. Whilst not relishing a patent dispute, Robertson said Linspire
would contest any Microsoft file format dispute.
Linspire released the latest version of its Linux-based desktop
operating system, Linspire 5.0, last month, touting ease-of-use and
affordability as key selling points. Robertson told a meeting of
early adopters, partners and journalists in London on Monday that the
release was "on par with XP and better in some areas".
Hardware support has traditionally been something of an Achilles heel
for Linux but Robertson said hardware compatibility is far better
than it was 12 months ago. "It's not just better support for graphics
cards, Linspire 5.0 supports a wide variety of peripheral devices,
including digital cameras and printers. Apps on Linux have also
improved with developments in OpenOffice, Firefox," he added. ®
---
* Origin: [adminz] tech, security, support (192:168/0.2)
generated by msg2page 0.06 on Jul 21, 2006 at 19:03:52
search: