Smaller open source start-ups challenge Red Hat, Novell.

The article reports that smaller open source startups are challenging open source distributor Red Hat Inc. Despite the dominance of Red Hat and Novell Inc., there is healthy competition in the open source market and companies have more choice sometimes at a lower cost. Red Hat competes on quality of service. Internet consultant Russell McOrmond said that vendor tie-ins are impossible for Red Hat. Srinvasan Krishnan distribution, the CTO of Mississauga, Ontario-based Farematrix evaluated various alternatives and settled on Debian as the most stable and best supported product instead of using Red Hat's application. Red Hat is clearly the leader in North America. It has been observed that brand recognition is one tool that keeps Red Hat and Novell at their present respective holding patterns. Internet consultant Russell McOrmond predicts that smaller open source distributors will get their chance to address the market. Governments worldwide are also recognizing the importance of open collaborative development.