Wednesday, 18 October 2006

Microsoft Open Sources Virtualisation Technology

Microsoft has revealed that software developers would no longer need to pay or license technology it provides, in order to help one computer run multiple operating systems at the same time. The company said it would provide access to a 'virtualisation' format on an open-source basis, saying this was the best way to get the broadest audience for its own specifications. The technology makes it easier for users to access programs or look at documents made by non-Microsoft vendors, the company said.

Demand from customers particularly in the government sector who use open-source servers such as Linux was one of the main reasons for the company to move toward open-source standards, said Microsoft spokesman Tom Brookes.

The European Union in 2004 levied a record USD 613 million fine on Microsoft and ordered the company to give rivals technical information needed to ensure interoperable products, saying Microsoft had deliberately tried to cripple them as it won control of the market.

Brookes said it was not connected to Microsoft's rows with EU regulators over supplying interoperability information to rivals. The company will no longer ask developers to sign a license agreement, he said. They are already offered the standard without cost.

Microsoft cited a study from research group International Data Corp saying it expected about 500,000 servers equipped with the virtual hard-disk technology would enter the marketplace this year, up from roughly zero just three years ago. The study showed that by 2009, about 1.2 billion machines should be equipped with the technology.