Per Einarsson, vice president of R&D, at Stockholm, Sweden-based Streamserve Inc says that the firm decided to release a Linux version of its Intelligent Output Management software (CI No 3,638) to be able to cash in on the hype of Linux itself. Einarsson claims to have a fairly good response to the move, with five US customers enquiring about the product in its first week of release. He claims that lower costs are the main reason ERP vendors such as SAP AG and symbiotic vendors such as Streamserve are investigating the Linux route. However, how to price Linux versions of established products will, Einarsson admits, be an issue. He says that Streamserve is following the pricing strategy of the ERP vendors as regards Linux. Interestingly, Einarsson sees a Linux brain drain opening in Sweden, the birthplace of the operating system, noting that Streamserve itself is moving its development work to its US offices in Raleigh, North Carolina.
