IBM brings Linux to British and Russian governments [LWN.net]

IBM has sent out two press releases describing its latest governmental Linux deals. The first release describes nine "proof of concept pilots" being run by the British Office of Government Commerce and Office of the eEnvoy. The pilot programs are meant to support the Offices' policy of increasing use of free software as an alternative to proprietary offerings. "These initial trials are being run by IBM and will measure the effectiveness and cost-benefits of IT systems based on OSS products, when compared against proprietary software solutions". In Russia, instead, IBM is setting up a Linux "competency center" in Moscow. "The new center will be set up to help customers of every size from industry, academia and government to take full advantage of the reliability, flexibility and total cost of ownership that Linux provides."