Mandriva S.A. is a Linux and open source
software company with its headquarters in Paris, France and development center in Curitiba, Brazil and publicly traded with the symbol MDKFF. Mandriva, S.A. is
the creator and maintainer of Mandriva Linux. Describing itself as a "project initiator
and a skills organizer in the Open Source arena", and a founding member of the
Desktop Linux Consortium.
Mandriva, S.A. began as MandrakeSoft in 1998.[1] It
currently has about 130 employees (80 of whom are engineers) and has offices in France,
USA, and Brazil.[2][3] It sells its products in more than 140 countries and estimates the number of Mandriva Linux users to be in the 6-to-8 million range.[3]
MandrakeSoft was forced to change its name as a result of losing litigation over the name Mandrake, in favor of
Hearst Corporation. The litigation concluded in February 2004, and appeals expired in
early 2005. The litigation arose because of Hearst Corporation's claim to the name "Mandrake", inspired by the comic
Mandrake the Magician. This litigation loss has forced MandrakeSoft to change its
name. In 2005, MandrakeSoft acquired the assets of Lycoris, and purchased
Conectiva. As a result of the forced name change, Mandriva was selected to reflect
MandrakeSoft and Conectiva.[4] In 2007, Mandriva concluded
an acquisition of Linbox.
Innovations
Mandriva has, like other Linux distributions, created several applications that give it a distinctive feel. The
urpmi package management tools and the suite of graphical system configuration tools contained in
the Mandriva Control Center are probably the most notable, along with nspluginwrapper which allows x86-32 plugins to be used within a x86-64 browser. Another example would be transfugdrake, a tool designed for migrating
documents and settings from Microsoft Windows to Mandriva Linux.
Financial State
Mandrakesoft operated under bankruptcy protection from
January 27, 2003 to March 30,
2004.[5][6] Despite its efforts to cut losses and improve
profits, Mandrakesoft was forced to file for protection due to a series of quarterly losses. The déclaration de cessation de
paiement (similar to the US Chapter 11) gave the company
protection from its creditors. Mandrakesoft recorded its first quarterly profit since 1999 of €270,000 on €1.42 million of revenue during the period between October 2003 and December 2003.[7]
Shares of Mandrakesoft are again being traded on the Euronext Marché Libre exchange (ISIN code
MLMAN) and on the US OTC Bulletin Board (Stock symbol MDKFF).[6]
Mandriva Club
As well as selling Linux distributions through its online store and authorized resellers, Mandriva sells subscriptions to the
Mandriva Club. There are several levels of membership, at costs ranging from US$66 or 60 € per year (as of 2008) to 600 € per
year.[8]
Club members gain access to the Club website, additional mirrors and torrents for downloading, free downloads of its boxed
products (depending on membership level), interim releases of the Mandriva Linux distribution, and additional software updates.
For example, only Gold-level and higher members can download Powerpack+ editions.
Mandriva encourage users to join the Club, because "in addition to the many benefits of Club membership, you will be helping
to ensure the continued development of the Mandriva Linux distribution",[8] and some members say they have joined the Club more to support their favorite distribution
financially than for its services. Many Mandriva commercial products come with short-term membership in the club. However,
Mandriva Linux is completely usable without a club membership.
Mandriva also has a Mandriva Corporate Club for larger organisations.[9]
Acquisitions
On October 4, 2004, Mandrakesoft acquired professional
support company Edge IT. Edge IT focused on the delivery of services and support to the corporate market in France and had 6
employees.[10]
On February 24, 2005, Mandrakesoft announced that it would
acquire Brazilian Linux distributor Conectiva for the amount
of €1.79 million (2.3 million US dollars at the time).[11]
On June 15, 2005, Mandriva acquired Lycoris (formerly, Redmond Linux Corporation).[12]
On October 5, 2006, Mandriva signed an agreement to acquire
Linux enterprise software infrastructure company Linbox. The agreement includes the acquisition of all shares of Linbox for a
total of $1.739 million in Mandriva stock, plus an earn out of up to $401,000 based on the 2006 Linbox financials.[13]
Controversy
Products
References
- ^ Corrêa, Fernando Ribeiro (May 2000).
"Linux in France: Guess
MandrakeSoft's Next Move". Linux Gazette (53). Retrieved on 2007-05-27.
- ^ "Mandriva aims its Linux at Mexican enterprises", DesktopLinux.com, 2006-12-27. Retrieved on 2007-05-27.
- ^ a b Corporate
information about Mandriva - Mandriva Linux. Mandriva Linux. Archived from the original on 2006-05-05. Retrieved on 2007-05-27.
- ^ Mandriva Linux (2005-04-07). Mandrakesoft Announces Name
Change!. Press release. Retrieved on 2007-05-27.
- ^ July 24th - 2003. Mandriva Linux (2003-07-24). Retrieved
on 2007-05-27.
- ^ a b Mandriva Linux (2004-03-30). Mandrakesoft
Exits Bankruptcy. Press release. Retrieved on 2007-05-27.
- ^ January 22nd - 2004. Mandriva Linux (2004-01-22).
Retrieved on 2007-05-27.
- ^ a b Welcome to the Mandriva Linux Users Club Page. Retrieved on 2007-10-03.
- ^ Welcome To The Mandriva Corporate Club. Retrieved on 2007-10-03.
- ^ O'Gara, Maureen. "Mandrakesoft Back in the Black",
Enterprise Open Source Magazine, 2004-12-04. Retrieved on 2007-05-27.
- ^ Mandriva Linux (2005-02-24). Linux companies Mandrakesoft
and Conectiva Announce Definitive Merger Agreement. Press release. Retrieved on
2007-05-27.
- ^ "Mandriva acquires Lycoris, boosts US presence, desktop prowess", DesktopLinux.com,
2005-06-15. Retrieved on 2007-05-27.
- ^ Mandriva Linux (2006-10-06). Mandriva Signs Definitive Agreement to Acquire Linux Enterprise Software Infrastructure
Company Linbox. Press release. Retrieved on 2007-05-27.
External links
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