Providing strong evidence that Linux is a serious contender in the enterprise, HP has announced some US$2.5 billion in Linux-based revenue for 2003 — up 40 percent from 2002. The company also unveiled a number of new additions to its Linux portfolio.

HP was top dog in the expanding Linux server market in the third quarter of 2003 with 28.1 percent of Linux server factory revenue worldwide, according to a report from IDC cited by the company.

The company also was the first major Linux vendor to offer a Linux Indemnity program for customers, with Novell launching a similar program earlier this week.

The revenue figures from HP are not surprising, Yankee Group analyst Dana Gardner told NewsFactor. The role of Linux for mainline enterprise organizations is growing rapidly, in large part because of greater control and trust associated with the technology, he said.

“The perception of open source has changed. Businesses now recognize that Linux is ready for prime time,” he said, adding that the latest products from HP, IBM, Red Hat and SuSE have allayed most fears. “In many cases, Linux is recognized as a hedge against lock-in, with more freedom to control how software works in the enterprise.”

News source: Yahoo!