Making Headlines

As significant public open source companies go, Red Hat stands above the rest. It may even stand ... well, all by itself in that capacity.

Whether to attribute this status to the flawless execution of Red Hat specifically or take it as proof that open source is simply not well-suited to big business is another matter.

Most Fort Lauderdale computer repair and open source experts believe that if it is to become the backbone of big technology firms, it will do so via new entrants, not existing players.

Why? Looking at Red Hat's most recent fiscal report may indicate that for new companies, open source can be quite profitable indeed.

Some of the data behind the results tells the story:

• Red Hat ended its fiscal year with $846 million and is debt free.
• Even in the current economic climate, for 2010, Red Hat is ambitiously forecasting an annual growth rate of 10-13 percent over 2009.
• Of the 40,000 new Red Hat Linux customers in 2009, the vast majority are customers that are starting off small. With room to grow.
• On that note, the average contract lasts 23-24 months, with pricing remaining "consistent for the last several years."
• Channel bookings grew 23 percent in FY 2009, while Red Hat more than doubled its number of partners to 4,500.
• Just 57 percent of bookings in 2008 came from the Americas, showing Red Hat's growing foothold in emerging, global markets.
• The recession has not changed the company in a significant way as of yet, a testament to not only its staying power, but its solvency.
• Company reporting suggests that subscription gross margin improved 60 basis points over the year to approximately 94 percent.