Larry, destroyer of all that is good: part II

[Click the image for a life-size Larry Ellison Halloween mask cut-out!]

As I wrote earlier this year, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison has had his eye set on challenging Microsoft's OS hegemony for some time. You'll recall that he was briefly the world's richest man, topping Bill Gates. One surmises he wishes to get back there. It appears he's decided that way is through dominating the Linux market. Looks like while he was interested in Novell some time back, he's set out to destroy Red Hat Linux, though he says he's not.

The announcement prompted an audience member to ask during a question-and-answer session: "So what happens to Red Hat? Is killing them the unintended side effect?"

"This is capitalism," Ellison. "We're competing. We're offering a better product at a lower price."

He also said: "We are trying to speed up the adoption of Linux. I don't think Red Hat is going to be killed. ... The goal here is very clear: We are on the side of pushing open standards in software. ... This isn't about Red Hat. ... The goal here is to make all versions of Linux better. So these bug fixes are immediately and freely available to anyone who wants to incorporate them into their systems."

I'm not sure exactly how this will play out. I have suspicions that many IT professionals will continue to use Red Hat's support offerings, though I admit that money will ultimately drive this. And the majority of IT professionals do not control the money in their shops. Those most sensitive to cost are higher up in the food chain and concomitantly more prone to be influenced by Oracle's maneuvering - leveraging perhaps their database and applications pricing with that of the OS. Ellison knows (and banks on) this.

I wonder if Ellison has made offers to purchase Red Hat - or if he's never deemed that necessary.

In any event, I know some stockholders who must be a tad angry this morning.