Following up on The Linux Foundation’s release of its 2015 report, “Linux Kernel Development: How Fast It is Going, Who is Doing It, What They Are Doing and Who is Sponsoring It,” journalist Paul Rubens observes in a CIO.com article that the idea of Linux as anti-establishment and developed by independent programmers has become an outdated notion.
With a large proportion of developers working for large companies in the software and hardware industries such as IBM, Intel, Texas Instruments, and Cisco, 80% of all Linux kernel work is accomplished by developers being paid for their work, notes Rubens.
Rubens quotes Amanda McPherson, Vice President of Developer Forums at The Linux Foundation, as saying that while some may find it surprising that so many contributors are paid, it is good for Linux that companies are contributing.
Speculating on the reasons for companies’ interest in contributing to the kernel, Rubens cites their desire to ensure that there are Linux drivers for their hardware and to make sure that the kernel supports their projects. He also points to the fact that kernel developers are in short supply which makes those who can contribute popular with employers.
Read “Who’s behind Linux now, and should you be afraid” at the CIO website.