Microsoft To Buy $100M More SUSE Support Vouchers 157
CWmike writes "Microsoft will buy and resell up to another $100 million worth of enterprise support subscriptions for Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise Server operating system. Two years ago, Microsoft agreed to buy and resell $240 million worth of the vouchers. Susan Hauser, general manager of strategic partnerships and licensing at Microsoft, confirmed that some of the subscription vouchers were sold to customers for less than face value, though none were given away for free."
Can anyone clarify? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Can anyone clarify? (Score:4, Interesting)
$100MM seems like a lot, but is this an under the table way to fund Moonlight (Mono version of Silverlight) to help them gain traction on Flash?
Re:Can anyone clarify? (Score:3, Interesting)
I suppose $100m will pay some Mono developers' salaries for a while longer, though I reckon if they wanted to really support Linux interoperability and suchlike, they'd have bought RedHat vouchers instead/as well.
Re:Microsoft to sell SUSE Support Vouchers .. (Score:5, Interesting)
insert car analogy here ...
Ford giving you a discount on your next Chevy (and service on the thing while you own it, too!)
Dunno what would be more incredulous - selling the scheme with a straight face, or actually buying into it with one.
(hey, you asked...)
Re:Can anyone clarify? (Score:4, Interesting)
Does anyone actually believe that Microsoft will fund anything which will provide exact or better experience than the same thing on Windows?
Why would people use Windows than? Why does MS create Silverlight at first place absolutely knowing industry will laugh at them? They were so bugged by Adobe changing policy and shipping Flash to all big three platforms at same time. A person enjoying Youtube on Linux is the Microsoft's worst nightmare. It shouldn't work!
Also Flash is way more than Youtube, you can even ship a full feature media player on 3 different platforms just by some Flash/Flex/Air stuff. E.g. Adobe Media Player.
The "Flash Lite 3" plans to ship it for free to multiple handheld platforms must be particularly alerting for MS.
If MS really wanted to race with Flash as a "new option", not "another opportunity to lock people to windows". I tell you what would happen. SilverlightInstaller.i386.rpm _and_ 64bit version (bit to bit, PERFECTLY same as windows) would be available from Microsoft site itself. Man, _that_ would raise alarm at Adobe.
Also, lets not forget Adobe makes money from the Flash creation tools and servers etc. so a future open source flash minus (patented and binary) codecs is not impossible thing. I am speaking about that kind of thing: https://www.helixcommunity.org/ [helixcommunity.org] , what would be the meaning of monkeying with open source code to replicate a microsoft technology knowing you will never achieve windows version?
Re:Can anyone clarify? (Score:2, Interesting)
Well, if their Linux support is anything like their Windows support, they won't stay on the market for long.
But if that is really their intent, I applaud them for using legitimate business tactic too.
Subtle effects on SUSE (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Can anyone clarify? (Score:3, Interesting)
But the main question is: Why go MS + (subsidized NOVL) rather than going 100% Linux (w/ paid support)
Granted, these are not regular Windows shops, but usually have extra specialized support from MS
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Comment removed (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Can anyone clarify? (Score:2, Interesting)
It is called hedging your bets and cutting your losses.
Let's say I'm a CIO who is considering putting Linux in my shop and dropping Microsoft. I'm a little scared, but I want to take the plunge.
Microsoft comes in, and says "we'll work with you. We'll see you commercial support for Linux, and push you in the direction of a Linux distro aimed at interoperability with Microsoft products."
Instead of Microsoft losing money completely, they make up the loss of Microsoft licenses with profits from support contracts, and convince the CIO to not drop Microsoft completely, but rather mix Linux and Microsoft products. They keep a close relationship with the CIO, and establish goodwill in the hopes the CIO will return completely to the Microsoft fold.
All the while they earn interoperability brownie points with the EU.
Is this evil? No. It is in fact really smart business and I applaud them following legitimate smart business tactics as opposed to some of their old ones.
I agree that it's just smart business. Microsoft is well aware that they need to have a shift in business model in order to survive as we've turned into a new century.
As much as I dislike Microsoft I must admit this was a good move on the business side.
I don't think that this is some deep seeded plot to destroy Linux from the inside. Microsoft probably gave up on doing that years ago, and you know how the saying goes "You can't beat them, jo- sell mediocre support for them for a nice profit"