Bahrain is a market maker and country built on innovation and out-of-the-box thinking, said George DeBono, the general manager (Middle East and Africa) of Red Hat, the world's leading provider of open source computer solutions.

He said Red Hat, whose advanced partner in Bahrain is Hilal Computers, saw Bahrain as a strategic launching pad for its business into Saudi Arabia and further afield in the region.

"We have a good, strong customer base already and that is something we are growing with Hilal Computers," DeBono remarked.

"We are focusing initially on the banking and finance industry, followed by the telecom sector and then governments," he added.

He said open sourced technology, which allows users to develop their own software and language avoiding the restrictions of proprietary systems, were showing strong growth and now 80 per cent of the Fortune 500 companies were using some open source application, while 75 per cent would have some cloud technology applications by 2013.

"We now operate in middle ware where a lot of businesses are moving away from propriety systems to open source with Dubai's Emirates Group recently signing a deal with us," he said.

"Because it is in open source technology, Red Hat has been doing well in the tough economic conditions because we deliver value-driven propositions without the client being locked into one operating system," the official said.

"Open source solutions save customers' money and we have even lost out on middle ware deals because customers thought we were too cheap."

"We now offer open source technology across the whole range of solutions, including infrastructure, operating, middle ware, cloud technology and storage. Open source technology is in use in every stock exchange because it sits behind transactions," said DeBono.

"Almost every airline booking is underpinned by open source, while our technology is behind every Marriott Hotel Group booking. Open source is basically just faster, cheaper and better than proprietary systems," he added.-TradeArabia News Service