 |
|
DAILY NEWS AND INFORMATION
FOR THE GLOBAL GRID COMMUNITY /
|
Systems/Enterprise:
NOVELL ANNOUNCES AGREEMENT TO
ACQUIRE SUSE LINUX
Novell announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire SUSE LINUX,
one
of the world's leading enterprise Linux companies, expanding Novell's ability
to provide enterprise-class services and support on the Linux platform. With
the open source expertise of SUSE LINUX and Novell's world-class networking
and identity solutions and support, training and consulting services, Novell
will be able to deliver Linux and all its components -- from the server to the
desktop -- and give organizations a secure, reliable and mature Linux
foundation. Novell will pay $210 million in cash to complete the acquisition.
The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and the winding up of
shareholder agreements. Novell expects the transaction to close by the end of
its first fiscal quarter.
This latest move follows Novell's August purchase of Ximian, a leader in
Linux
server and desktop solutions, and further demonstrates Novell's ongoing
commitment to provide customers a full range of Linux solutions. Both the
Ximian and SUSE LINUX acquisitions affirm Novell's commitment to promoting the
open source model and developer community.
Novell also announced that IBM intends to make a $50 million investment in
Novell convertible preferred stock. In addition, Novell and IBM are
negotiating extensions to the current commercial agreements between IBM and
SUSE LINUX for the continued support of SUSE LINUX on IBM's eServer products
and middleware products to provide for product and marketing support
arrangements related to SUSE LINUX. Both of these agreements will be effective
when the acquisition of SUSE LINUX by Novell is completed.
"Responding to customer demands for open, standards-based computing, Novell
has been dedicated to a cross-platform vision for four years now, and Linux is
an increasingly important part of that strategy," said Jack Messman, chairman
and CEO of Novell. "The acquisition of SUSE LINUX will complete Novell's
ability to offer enterprise-class Linux solutions to our customers from the
desktop to the server. No other enterprise Linux vendor has the operating
system experience and the worldwide technical support capabilities that Novell
will be able to deliver. Novell is bringing our significant resources to bear
to help customers adopt Linux with more confidence, giving them the freedom of
choice Linux provides without the anxiety over whether an open source solution
can truly be relied on for mission-critical functions."
"Novell understands the power of open, standards-based computing, and has
been
moving in that direction for some time," said Richard Seibt, CEO of SUSE
LINUX. "Novell's global reach, marketing expertise and reputation for
security, reliability and global enterprise-level support are exactly what
we've been seeking to take SUSE LINUX to the next level. We've also been
impressed by the incredible loyalty and competence of Novell customers and
business partners, and we're looking forward to joining forces to help
customers gain the benefits of Linux and to help Novell continue to expand its
role in the open source community."
SUSE LINUX Offerings Complement Novell Linux Services
SUSE LINUX offers a range of Linux server and desktop solutions designed to
meet the diversified needs of different organizations. SUSE LINUX Enterprise
Server 8 for midsize to large companies provides a range of core networking
services with the high-availability and scalability features needed for
mission-critical environments.
SUSE LINUX is the leading enterprise Linux company in Europe. In addition,
through its relationships with Conectiva and Turbolinux, SUSE LINUX has been a
leader in Latin America and Asia, as well. SUSE LINUX is also one of the top
providers of Linux to enterprises in the United States and North America.
Novell's extensive global sales and channel programs, proven and reliable
technical support capabilities, as well as ongoing Novell and SUSE LINUX
relationships with key partners like IBM, Oracle, SGI, Fujitsu-Siemens, Dell,
Intel, AMD, SAP, HP and others, provide a powerful business network to promote
more rapid Linux adoption around the globe.
Novell's Linux Strategy
The acquisition of SUSE LINUX will be an important step in Novell's efforts
to
accelerate enterprise adoption of Linux. Novell began building solutions for
Linux in early 2000, when it made its flagship eDirectory technology available
on Linux. In April of this year, Novell announced it would make all the
services that run on its NetWare operating system run on both the NetWare and
Linux kernels in the future with the full range of Novell's worldwide
technical support. In August, Novell acquired Ximian with its leading Linux
desktop management solutions and its visionary leadership to promote Linux
desktops and to enable Microsoft .NET applications to run on Linux.
In September, Novell announced the open beta of Novell Nterprise Linux
Services (NLS), an offering that runs on SUSE LINUX and Red Hat and provides a
variety of networking services for Linux environments. IBM, HP and Dell have
all licensed the NLS technology for resale to their customers. With SUSE
LINUX, Novell expands its reach to developers and ISVs looking for a complete
Linux solution. Today's announcement of Novell's plans to acquire SUSE LINUX
strengthens Novell's already proven set of Linux offerings by allowing Novell
to distribute the underlying Linux platform itself, in addition to the many
value-added services for Linux that Novell already offers.
"We chose SUSE LINUX because they are a clear market leader in Linux
technology for the enterprise," Messman said. "With this acquisition, Novell
will be the only billion-dollar software company with a Linux distribution and
a worldwide ecosystem around it. A worldwide technical staff of more than 600
has been trained to support Linux. The acquisition of SUSE LINUX completes our
technology stack from the desktop to the server."
Beyond the technology, the acquisition will also expand Novell's strategic
commitment to the open source community. The combination of SUSE LINUX and
Novell will deliver not only complete enterprise Linux software solutions, but
also worldwide channels and industry-leading partnerships. The combined
company will help promote a thriving, global open source ecosystem that
creates innovation and choice for developers, users and organizations alike.
Novell is firmly committed to open standards and maintaining the existing open
source kernel development efforts. From advocacy and development resources to
events and support of open source efforts like kernel projects, XFree86,
ReiserFS, KDE, GNOME and Mono, Novell stands side-by-side with the open source
community.
|