Santa Rosa, CA — (press release excerpt) — The Embedded Linux Consortium (ELC) today announced the results of its annual board of director's election. The ELC's 120+ members voted from a field of 16, electing seven. The board is responsible for steering the organization's recent move into platform standardization and an aggressive promotional mission throughout the world.

Five incumbents were re-elected and two new candidates gained board seats. Re-elected are Dr. Inder Singh (chairman and CEO, LynuxWorks); Michael Tiemann (chief technology officer, Red Hat); James Ready (CEO, MontaVista Software); Dan Bandera (business line manager, IBM Pervasive Computing); and Greg Wright (an independent Linux community member). The two new board members are Dr. Kiwon Lee (head of corporate technology operations and executive vice president, Samsung Electronics); and Victor Yodaiken (CEO, FSMLabs). Yodaiken's election fills a vacant position and brings the board to full strength.

Following the election, the board selected the following officers:

• Chairperson/President Dr. Inder Singh
  
• Vice Chair Dan Bandera
  
• Treasurer James Ready
  
• Vice President, Special Projects Greg Wright
  
• Vice President, Europe Anthony O'Sullivan
  
• Secretary (Executive Director) Murry Shohat

The European vice presidency is a new position created by the board to help ELC-Europe, the first chapter of the ELC, acquire organizational resources. In this role, Anthony O'Sullivan (vice president of marketing, Tuxia), will attend ELC board meetings on behalf of European members. O'Sullivan will form a European marketing committee to set priorities for promotional activities, recruit participants for the ELC's platform initiative, and act as the ELC's representative in Central Europe from his base in Augsburg, Germany.

“With a rising market share and growing developer interest in embedded Linux, Europe is a prime market and important development incubator,” said O'Sullivan. “I look forward to collaborating with industry-leading companies to help Europe take a leadership role. With my experience in the development of embedded Linux applications for information appliances, I know that the adoption of the ELC platform standard and the definition of technical standards for performance, footprint and memory are critical.”

Turbulent Economic Conditions Gain Attention

The new board and officers face a growing challenge due to economic conditions and an increase in competitive activity by companies who most fear loss of market share to embedded Linux competitors.

“Everyone is struggling with the decline in revenues pervasive throughout the technology-based industries,” said ELC Chairman, Dr. Inder Singh. “Embedded technology and Linux in particular are bright spots in a down market,” he added, “and competitors are ratcheting up the campaign of fear, uncertainty and doubt aimed at open source software like Linux. The ELC has an important role to play in promoting the shared interests of its members, and helping to forestall both the real and perceived threat of destructive fragmentation. Our new board plans to deal decisively with both the business climate and the FUD merchants by helping Linux gain traction, avoid fragmentation and achieve global standardization.”

James Ready, Corporate Executive Board member and CEO, MontaVista Software, said, “through my extensive service with numerous embedded industry committees and organizations, I will continue to help the Linux community steer clear of potholes on the road to standardization. I plan to help the Embedded Linux Consortium to maintain a vendor-neutral climate and market-building focus. To combat FUD, I will help all ELC members by evangelizing the benefits of pure embedded Linux and its Open Source development model.”

Dr. Kiwon Lee, Corporate Executive Board member and Executive Vice President, Samsung Electronics, said “I recognize the enormous importance of embedded Linux for future consumer space. Now is the time to push the establishment of embedded Linux as a commercially successful platform and to build a “win-win” common ground for the embedded Linux community members.”

“I hope that FSMLab's participation in the Embedded Linux Consortium will be useful to three communities in which we are involved: Linux developers, Linux customers using RTLinux and other real-time Linux variants in industrial applications, and small companies creating Linux software” said Victor Yodaiken, FSMLabs CEO and ELC Corporate Affiliate Board Member. “The embedded Linux Consortium represents a number of vigorous and highly motivated communities and I am looking forward to keeping Linux at the forefront of real-time systems and technologies.”

Non-corporate Board member Greg Wright of Sydney, Australia, an IT consultant, said, “The unparalleled development environment — the backbone of Linux — where independent programmers collaborate on a reputation and need basis, builds legendary strength into the operating system. Collaboration explains why Linux, open source licensing and 'free' software have earned corporate floodlights. As a director, I will continue building this vital bridge between business interests and the Linux community. I will help the ELC propagate Linux for consumer benefit through participatory efforts of Linux community members.

About the Embedded Linux Consortium

Responding to the rising tide of interest in Linux for embedded applications, representatives from dozens of technology firms formed the ELC, a vendor-neutral trade association dedicated to advancing the depth, breadth and speed of Linux adoption in the enormous embedded computer market. The ELC offers free membership to developers who demonstrate their participation in the Open Source code base of the Linux operating system. The ELC's headquarters are in Santa Rosa, Calif. Anthony O'Sullivan at Tuxia in Augsburg, Germany represents Europe.

 
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