We’re seeing yet more signs of IT and software sales channels opening up to open source. The latest deal, whereby Canonical will make Ubuntu Enterprise Cloud (UEC) on Dell blade servers available to public users through government middleman Autonomic Resources, reinforces the idea that system integrators (SIs), VARs, service providers and others are quickly and increasingly including open source options and products in their offerings and recommendations.

What’s driving this channel awakening and why now? I believe it is a combination of two things: open source software’s association with cost savings and its significance and prominence in cloud computing. There are other factors as well: open source software’s growing number of commercial backers and evolved enterprise credibility, specific instances where access to source code is paramount, reliability, performance and innovative reasons, and others. There is also momentum on the part of open source users and customers, particularly those in the public sector, that are now making their open source use more official by policy and procedure. However, I believe it is cost and cloud that, in combination, are truly driving open source software right now.

We’ve covered the growth of open source software in traditional technology sales channels — i.e. the public sector, SMBs, global SIs and local suppliers — in more depth in a recent report (451 subscribers only). The Autonomic Resources deal for Canonical, commercial backer of the cloud-popular Ubuntu Linux, also comes as we watch some interesting partnerships and integrations, as well as the continued cloud progress of Linux in general.

There’s no question the channel is critical to deliver software and other IT products and services to broader swaths of customers. It is also becoming more apparent that the rise of open source software in IT sales channels is also unquestionable.