Canonical is taking three small but significant steps to build a partner channel for Ubuntu Linux. The VAR Guy stumbled upon the strategy during a surprise visit to Canonical’s offices near Boston. Here’s the scoop.
During a visit to OnForce, which operates an online marketplace for solutions providers, The VAR Guy popped his head into the neighboring offices of Canonical. While there, he picked up some marketing materials from the Ubuntu Linux promoter.
The materials had three key messages, written for:
- Solutions providers (VARs, integrators, etc.)
- System builders (white box PC makers)
- Partners, customers and consumers seeking training
Solutions Providers
In the marketing piece, Canonical points out a number of potential benefits for Ubuntu partners. But one line caught The VAR Guy’s eye. It states that solutions providers will have:
“an opportunity to benefit from our collaboration with the world’s leading IT companies including Dell, IBM, Intel, VMware, Google and Sun.”
That’s a pretty strong message. The Google claim sounds like a bit of a stretch, but The VAR Guy knows all the other companies have core commitments to Ubuntu.
System Builders
Admittedly, The VAR Guy doesn’t write much about the white box market. It’s not a topic that excites him. Still, the system builder channel isn’t going away. And Canonical will need system builders in order to bolster Ubuntu’s desktop presence.
In order to court system builders, Canonical’s marketing claims Ubuntu offers:
- A reliable, secure and predictable release schedule
- A license-free product with free security and critical fix updates
- The best hardware compatibility of any Linux OS
Hmmm. Basically, Canonical is playing up all of Ubuntu’s strengths over Windows Vista. Predictable releases, no-strings-attached licenses, and hardware compatibility. Impressive.
Selling Ubuntu Training Courses
Ah, yes. Training. It’s a critical component in any channel strategy.
Canonical has developed on-line and instructor-led training to help accelerate Ubuntu deployments, user expertise and overall channel support. The marketing materials are a bit generic, but the company is driving partners to a training-specific web site (www.ubuntu.com/training).
Next Steps
To be sure, Canonical is becoming more channel savvy. But it’s still far too early to weigh the success — or failure — of Canonical’s partner strategy.
In the Linux market, Red Hat has a huge lead with its partner program. Meanwhile, Novell is rediscovering the power of the channel, and Novell is set to announce its new channel chief in the next few days.
Canonical’s best chance for success, The VAR Guy believes, involves spring boarding from desktops onto corporate departments and onto small business servers.
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Canonical are not offering anything that Mandriva http://www.mandriva.com/enterprise/en/products/overview is not offering, plus the fact that Mandriva Linux actually runs on more and different hardware than Canonical’s offering. See the Calssmate with Mandriva Linux support http://www.mandriva.com/enterprise/en/partners/classmate-pc-with-mandriva-linux or the GDium http://www.gdium.com/
Ubuntu is a brand that’s going mainstream, backed by companies like Dell and to a lesser extent, Sun. Are any big mainstream computer companies backing Mandriva?
The question may not matter to true open source advocates. But for mainstream users considering Linux, brands like Dell matter.
[Mandriva user here (used Ubuntu for years)]
Having tried both, Joe, Mandriva is better.
Just typed in Mandriva, Ubuntu¨ into Google Trends and it is a sorry sight for Mandiva.
I think the basic difference is that Mandiva hasn´t got a ¨Mark Shuttleworth¨.
MS (unfortunate initials) has, apart from a degree in business management, and a proven track record by the time he was 25, tremendous flair and vision, coupled to imagination and doing things in the right order. He is, as they say in South Africa, a smart cookie.
If someone told me I could have a million dollars/pounds.yen or whatever (or 1,000,000,000,000,000,056,763.84 Zimbabwean dollars) as long as I invested in a Linux distribution, then it would have to be Ubuntu.
This is an example I often use to focus my thinking and I used it immediately I read the article before seeing the comments.(I added the Zim dollars for humour.)
Ampers.
I bet there are more mandriva users than ubuntu in the real world out there. I am one of them.
ubuntu is all marketing and hype. True, marketing can get you some eyeballs but in an OSS world of choice, eventually people get wiser. Besides, mandriva has been around a long time and it has an established base of users.
@VM: Your statement that Ubuntu is “all marketing and hype” is WAY off the mark. Did you know Canonical doesn’t spend a dime on advertising? What they HAVE managed to do is successfully engage mainstream PC makers (Dell, for one) to push the Linux desktop discussion forward.
The VAR Guy is not suggesting that Ubuntu is better than Mandriva, SUSE, Red Hat and all the other options. But The VAR Guy is stating that Ubuntu is for real and is gaining critical mass.
The point was different. The point is that it’s about perception, Joe.
I like the foundation being set with these materials. What I personally hope to see soon is advertising in “mainstream” channels, like TV and radio and newspapers. Having a few flash ads on technology sites doesn’t let the general public know they actually have a choice. Once these three key messages mature into solid offerings, there will be an excellent foundation ready for the masses to hear about GNU/Linux in more direct advertising.
@ vm
Look at the stats:
http://www.desktoplinux.com/news/NS8454912761.html
Sorry. Ubuntu 1, Suse 2. Mandriva? 3%. Pathetic.
UNIX has been around for a long time. It had an established user base. It’s largely been replaced by Linux.
DOS, MS or otherwise had an established user base. The Acorn BBC Micro had a monopoly in British schools. The Amiga had been around for awhile and had an established user base. Likewise with Atari, Amstrad and any number of companies. Remember Sega?
The next gen console race used to be between Sega and Nintendo. Now it’s Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony!
Come to think of it. Apple with it’s fan boys has been around longer than Microsoft. IBM has been around longer than most!
In a commercial environment your user base counts for nothing if you’re not attracting investment in one form or another. Think partnerships, OEMs etc.