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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 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. 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.
Novell Names New CEO in Shakeup 06/22/06 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. 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.
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