20 May 2008
Global revenue for operating system (OS) software will total $28.9 billion (£14.7 billion) in 2008, a 7.2 per cent increase on 2007, according to Gartner.
The analyst forecast that worldwide OS software revenue will reach $37.5 billion (£19.1 billion) by 2012, but suggested that the industry will face short- and long-term disruption.
Matthew Cheung, senior researcher at Gartner, explained: "Unix to Linux substitutions, users’ behaviours, disruptive technology and anti-piracy endeavours will continue to shape the market and change the market dynamics.
He said that virtualisation could lead to the displacement of OS as a traditional infrastructure layer, while multi-core chips could bring about changes in the licensing models used by OS vendors.
Alternative delivery models, such as software-as-a-service (SaaS) were also highlighted for their disruptive effects, with Gartner suggesting that they will change the way software services are delivered, reducing the importance of the traditional OS.
Recently, software company VMware announced new enhancements for its Virtual Desktop Infrastructure application, which allows for the creation of a virtualised desktop environment that can be run on virtual machines, instead of tradition PCs, while being centrally managed.<br/>
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