Linux loves the credit crunch

When you don't want to buy your OS, Linux is the sensible choice.

While the global recession may have many down in the dumps, it's apparently good news for Linux, with market research outfit IDC claiming it's going to come out of the crunch a winner.

In a report entitled The Opportunity for Linux in a New Economy, sponsored by the Linux Foundation, IDC posits that Linux as a platform is set to "thrive in the post-recession time period".

Unix and Windows do less well by IDC predictions, with the boffins' data indicating Unix will "experience the least robust post-recession recovery" and Volish Windows will only recover "at moderate rates".

Linux's big advantage, according to IDC, is that the platform is available at a plethora of prices, from free to ‘oh-my-goodness-since-when-is-Linux-charging-enterprise-subscriptions-for-thousands-of-bucks-a-year-per-system?!'

IDC says the growth in shipments for Linux servers has been on the up and up since 2000 when punters bought 500,000 units. In 2003 shipments reached 1 million units and IDC analysts expect this year's numbers to top 1.5 million units.

IDC's crystal balls predict that Linux-related software spending will triple from $12.3 billion in 2008 to $35.5 billion in 2013 with a whopping annual growth rate of 23.6 per cent. This is lower than the 37 per cent growth posted in 2006 and the 30 per cent growth in 2008, but both Windows and Unix have seen much steeper slowdowns.

Also, when viewed in the context of expected software market growth of five per cent over five years, Linux outpaces the market by a factor of five whilst Unix and Windows don't even come close.

Of course the Linux ecosystem is not just about software, but also about hardware and services. While IDC concedes that spending on new server hardware is bound to see a "sharp reduction" this year, it says the sheer hunger for Linux applications, development and deployment tools will make up for it.

Read the full report in PDF form here.