Member Avatar for Tekmaven

Has anyone seen the IBM commercial titiled, "The Future is Open"? When the commercial first started, I was thinking that it was cool. As I realized what the commercial was about, I felt a little offended :!:.

I emplore all of you go and watch the commercial.

Link:

Scroll down and find "The Future is Open" commercial and view it in your favorite media player.

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by twilli227

Dani AI

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Short context and a practical read on why that IBM spot stirred a few nerves.

IBM ran a big, mainstream ad campaign in September 2003 that personified Linux as a precocious boy and used celebrity voiceovers to make the idea of “open” easier for non‑technical buyers to digest. That creative was produced by Ogilvy & Mather and deliberately targeted high‑visibility broadcasts to reach IT decision makers, not just Linux geeks. (internetnews.com)

Why some readers here feel “offended” — ’s reaction — is predictable. A grassroots, volunteer‑driven movement getting reframed as a corporate marketing story can feel like co‑option: the culture and values of open source are different from the incentives of a large vendor. At the same time IBM’s motive was strategic: mainstreaming Linux helped reduce costs and grow markets for IBM servers and services, so the campaign blended publicity and business strategy. (encyclopedia.com)

There’s another side, which and others touched on: the campaign also countered fear, uncertainty and doubt about Linux and helped make open‑source a legitimate option for enterprises. Competitors responded with their own messaging, so the ads were part of a larger market battle over perception and procurement. (adweek.com)

If the ad rankled, practical options that preserve open values are simple and effective: keep contributing to upstream projects, support community‑run foundations and distributions, highlight licensing and governance best practices, and push for transparency in corporate contributions. That preserves the community’s agency even as companies bring resources and scale.

For background reading about the campaign and its industry context, the contemporaneous coverage at InternetNews, Adweek and archival ad pages gives a clear picture of intent, cast and reception. (internetnews.com)

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Member Avatar for twilli227

Why would you feel offended? Is it because it is about linux?

Member Avatar for Tekmaven

Well, honestly... yeah. Linux is nice, I'm even posting from it right now, but its not our savior. I don't know.. I'm just really offended.

Maybe beacuse I use things that compare to Linux, and sometimes exceed Linux's abilities.

Member Avatar for xlogan777

perhaps u feel offended because u see how linux is growing and u
wish linux to grow or move in another direction

Member Avatar for s_PeePs

Well, for heaven's sake TekMaven, don't be coy, what do you mean?

Of course, I think Linux IS our savior, but for reasons other than technical ones. It's forcing Microsoft to be competative rather than anticompetative. AS I am learning RedHat, I also consider Linux to be my personal savior... along with Jesus Christ.

With SCO lobbying congress about the Linux Threat to American business, the IBM commercial is the perfect antiFUD. It made me feel good all over.

Finally, I would like to remind you that the tag line wasn't "The Future is Linux". It was "The Future is Open". Do you really disagree with that?

Member Avatar for WEATHER CHANNEL

It's safe to say he knows not since there is no reply.

Member Avatar for Zachery

Linux is not our Saviour, its another N/OS that does somthings better than others, but remeber there is also UNIX FREEBSD and MacOS which are all NOT windows.

Linux has its up sides and its down sides, and if anyone of you tell me that linux is just better than windows your just a zelot

Member Avatar for twilli227

Linux is just better than Windows, for me. ;)

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