The Linux Foundation recently announced that the Google giant has become a Platinum member of its organization. Google joins companies such as AT & T, Cisco, Fujitsu, Hitachi, Huawei, IBM, Intel, Microsoft, NEC, Oracle, Qualcomm, Tencent, Samsung and VMware who already have Platinum membership in the organization. Previously, the Mountain View firm was registered as a Silver member.
The Linux Foundation is a nonprofit consortium created in 2007. Its mission is to protect and standardize Linux by providing the centralized resources and services needed to compete effectively with other operating systems. The consortium currently has more than 800 members who can be distinguished according to their level of membership within the entity. In the Linux Foundation, the Platinum member status granted to a partner corresponds to the highest level of membership.
The Mountain View firm will also receive a seat on the Board of Directors of the Linux Foundation. Sarah Novotny, the Google Cloud Platform open source strategy manager, is expected to join the Linux Foundation board on behalf of the Alphabet subsidiary.
"Google is one of the largest contributors and supporters of open source globally. We are delighted that they have decided to increase their involvement in the Linux Foundation, "said Jim Zemlin, executive director of the organization. "We are honored to have Sarah Novotny, an important figure in the open source community, join our board of directors, she will be a great asset," he continued.
Google has been an active and committed contributor to the open source community for many years. The company's achievements include its contribution to the creation and release of projects such as Kubernetes, Cloud Foundry, Node.js and the Open API Initiative. As a Platinum member, the Alphabet affiliate will now be required to contribute $ 500,000 per year to the consortium in lieu of the $ 100,000 USD usually claimed from Silver members.
"The Linux Foundation is an essential part of the open source community: by working closely with the organization, we can better interact with the community as a whole and continue to build a more inclusive ecosystem where everyone can win" , will add Novotny.
