Database sales bouncing back

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Same old story: Linux kills Unix, Microsoft thrives

From the article:
Much of the gains for Linux came at the expense of Unix, the big loser in 2003, according to the study. Sales of database software on Unix systems dropped by 6 percent overall, as more customers moved to other operating systems, primarily Linux, Graham said.

Oracle is contributing to Unix's problems:

Graham said the growth in Linux sales is part of an orchestrated move by Oracle to cannibalize its own installed base on Unix before the company's competitors can step in and make a deal. "Because Oracle is the dominant player in a declining Unix market, they are telling customers to move to Linux," she said.

Oracle wants to throw some kind of a bone to open source fans, make some kind of reference to Microsoft:

Oracle's Shimp said much of the company's Linux sales are due to consolidation from Unix. "But we are also seeing migrations from Windows to Linux. The trend in terms of new purchases is that people are choosing a lot of Linux for new systems," he said.

Problem with that is, how much of Linux sales are left to be taken from Microsoft once the Unix kills are discounted.

As the article says:

Sales of database software on Linux systems nearly doubled in 2003, to nearly $300 million, Gartner said. That's still a drop in the bucket, compared with overall sales.

So, with Linux tearing off such a big chunk of the Unix market, it can't be doing more than nibbling at Windows.
(The quote from the Microsoft manager is so mangled it's incoherent. Seems, though, that he's not much worried.)

As far as Microsoft is concerned:

Sales of databases on Windows remained strong, climbing 4 percent in 2003, due mainly to strong growth of Microsoft's SQL Server database. While Microsoft gained 11 percent in the Windows market, its rate of growth has slowed, Gartner said. The company increased Windows database sales by 17 percent in 2002.

ZDNet continues its policy of trying to find something, anything positive to say about Linux.

Quote:
Part of the reason for the slowing growth [from 17% down to 11% on a larger base] comes from the popularity of Linux.

After this statement, the article starts the proof by saying that Microsoft now owns the small business market on Windows:

IBM and Oracle, which in years past targeted Windows for sales to smaller businesses, have largely ceded that market to Microsoft, Graham said.

So Oracle, at least, is trying to keep customers off Windows entirely:

Customers that might have moved to Windows are instead looking at Linux. "Oracle was the No. 1 vendor on Windows in 1999. Then Microsoft took over and has tailored Windows to make SQL Server run better. Now Oracle sees Linux as a strategic platform," she [Graham presumably] said.

All Oracle has to do is keep customers who already have Windows from installing Windows-based database software, and sell them on installing Linux so they can stay with Oracle. This is about small businesses, remember. Good luck, Oracle!

The take-away is, Microsoft is growing hugely in a market that will be the basis for sales of other new software, as noted earlier in the story. Might even be Microsoft software.

I think the story for Microsoft is positive, don't you?

Posted by: Anton Philidor   Posted on: 05/27/04 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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