MacMillan Captures 52% of Linux Retail Sales for August '99
Oct 27th, 19:51 UTC
Complete Linux 6.0 Only Linux Title in Business Software Top 20
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana - October 27, 1999 - Macmillan USA continued to
dominate the Linux retail software sales in August for the second
consecutive month. According to figures from PC Data, (http://www.pcdata.com ), Macmillan accounted for 52% of total Linux
software units sold at retail, up from 51% in July. In addition, Macmillan's
best selling package, Complete Linux 6.0, was the only Linux product to rank
in PC Data's top 20 list of best selling business software (at #14).
While other individual Linux distributors experienced a slight drop in sales
for August, Macmillan saw a 21% jump in total volume. "These results confirm
that Linux is not just a niche product, but has become a viable alternative
in the mainstream operating system marketplace," said Lyn Blake, Macmillan's
vice president of sales. "As a publishing company, Macmillan's strength
lies in our retail distribution channels-opening the markets and providing
the information that consumers want in the formats they demand."
Linux is nothing new to Macmillan. The company has been selling Linux books
for the past five years and software for almost three years. "Linux has long
been a major focus for us," stated Lynn Zingraf, vice president of Macmillan
Software. "We have targeted our Linux software line toward the
end-users-those people who have heard about the open-source phenomenon and
want to experiment with it for themselves."
Zingraf notes that not only is Macmillan pleased with its standing at
retail, but they are particularly proud of the partnerships they are
building within the Linux community. "Through our LPI sponsorship and by
participating with endeavors such as the Internet Software Consortium and
the Xfree86 Project, Macmillan is active in giving back to the Linux
community to help support the open source movement," Zingraf said.
In June of 1999, launching its new Linux software line (based around the
Mandrake distribution) which consisted of packages scaled to the entry-level
user, Macmillan turned what was a small but popular distribution into a
widespread competitive product. In late September, Macmillan released
Complete Linux 6.5, and Deluxe Linux 6.5, based on the latest Mandrake
distribution update, adding value with the award-winning applications
Partition Magic and Boot Magic-plus 24-hour e-mail customer support from
LinuxCare.
In addition to the operating system product-line, Macmillan Software offers
a variety of additional Linux-based products, such as Oracl8i, BRU-Personal
Edition, Linux Utilities, and Maximum Security Linux.
ABOUT MACMILLAN USA
Macmillan USA is the world's largest computer book publisher and third
largest publisher of operating systems. As one of the industry's leading
innovators in both print and digital formats, Macmillan's book imprints
include Que, Sams, Hayden, Lycos Press, Alpha, BradyGAMES Strategy Guides,
Complete Idiot's Guides, and Waite Group Press. Macmillan's digital
divisions include Macmillan Software and InformIT. Macmillan USA is an
operating unit of Pearson Education, the world's leading education
publisher.
For more information, please contact:
Detra Perry-Amico
Macmillan USA
317.581.3594
f
ax: 317.581.3611
e-mail: dperryamico@mcp.com
Sterling Lenheim
Pat Meier Associates P.R
415.392.4200
fax: 415.392.4205
e-mail: slenheim@patmeier.com
For the latest software from Macmillan USA, visit
http://www.macmillansoftware.com.
See Macmillan's complete Linux product offering at
http://www.placeforlinux.com.
(Submitted by Martin Pitts of Linux Today)
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