Novell to promote Linux in China

Novell has decided to get more involved in promoting Linux and the Open Source initiative on the Chinese market and the first step was the signing of a contract with China Standard Software.

Novell will collaborate with the Chinese government, but also with non-governmental organizations by offering consultancy and technical support.
"Local partnerships are vital in the Chinese market, so this is a big step forward. We believe success in China can have an important impact for Linux, and Novell's role in Linux, in the broader Asian market. So while I wouldn't call this a 'new' push in Asia for us, I'd certainly call it an important step forward." - Novell spokesman Bruce Lowry.

It seems China is Linux's fiefdom, and despite the local distributions and small prices, Microsoft failed to impose itself on the market.

It's interesting to notice that not even the major distributions of Linux have a significant share on the Chinese market, the most popular desktop distribution being Red Flag Linux, which according to IDC has sold the most units.

Regarding servers, IDC studies have pointed out Turbolinux as the most important player with a market share of 62%.