The Linux Foundation, the nonprofit organization dedicated to accelerating the growth of Linux, today announced that China Mobile Communications Corporation ("China Mobile"), whose holding company is majority shareholder of China Mobile Ltd. (NYSE: CHL),has become a Gold member, marking the first time a Chinese enterprise has joined The Linux Foundation.

China Mobile is the world's largest telecom operator by market value. It also ranks as the largest carrier in the world in terms of customer base and the scale of its network, through which it provides mobile services including voice data, IP telephony and multimedia. China Mobile has recently been investing in Linux, in its OPhone mobile operating system, and has developed a cloud computing system based on open source software. Its membership in The Linux Foundation shows its further commitment to the Linux platform.

The Linux Foundation is engaged in the worldwide promotion, training and standardization of Linux,fostering technical and marketing cooperation in the computing industry. The Linux Foundation has three levels of membership: Platinum, Gold and Silver. At present, there are approximately 100 members, including seven Platinum members and, with the membership of China Mobile, ten Gold members.

"China Mobile's decision to join The Linux Foundation and their commitment to Linux could represent a seismic step toward a realignment of OSes in China and in the telecommunications industry," said Jim Zemlin, executive director at The Linux Foundation. "For The Linux Foundation, the opportunity to present Linux as a choice to 560 million users is a power-packed proposition."

Bill Huang, General Manager of China Mobile Research Institute, stated: "China Mobile recognizes. The Linux Foundation as the world's foremost nonprofit Linux organization, the focal point for Linux technology, standardization and innovation. We see enormous value in the open architecture of the Linux system and look forward to contributing to Linux on a global scale."

In recent years, China has played an increasingly important role in Linux. Chinese developers have contributed to Linux kernel development, and Linux has been widely used in commerce and education in China. According to a research report jointly issued by Springboard Research and Spiceworks, the utilization rate of Linux servers among SMEs in the Asia Pacific region now exceeds 25 percent,which is higher than the world average.

Many of the largest Chinese Internet companies - Sina, Shanda, Baidu, Taobao, Netease, and others-are using Linux because of its open architecture, stability and performance. In addition, several hardware manufacturers, such as Huawei and Lenovo, are shipping Linux-based routers, servers,notebooks, mobile phones, and other products.

Source:

Jennifer Cloer
http://lwn.net