This IDC study reviews the growth of the Linux client and server operating environment market during 2008 and provides a shipment and installed base forecast through 2013.

"The economic downturn is impacting nearly every IT market segment and has placed its mark on the Linux server operating environment and client operating environment markets, says Al Gillen, program vice president, System Software at IDC. "The long-term prognosis for Linux is good, but we see 2009 as a turning point for the nature of Linux adoption and deployment, as customers rationalize through the new economic realities and factor in other considerations such as the best way to use virtualization software. In the end, the markets of tomorrow are going to behave differently than the markets of the past."