Novell Names Smid to European Post

Novell has appointed a new president for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), the company said Thursday.

Volker Smid, who has been Novell’s central European general manager since May 2005, will supervise Novell’s sales and consulting business for EMEA. Smid replaces Tom Francese, who took over as Novell’s executive vice president for worldwide sales in October.

Novell, which bought Suse Linux in 2004, is trying to catch up with market-leading Linux vendor Red Hat by trying to move its NetWare OS customers to its Suse Linux distribution.

Novell forged a controversial deal with Microsoft last month that includes making Windows and Suse Linux more compatible and indemnifying Suse Linux users and some developers from potential patent lawsuits from Microsoft.

Novell’s revenue has continued to fall amid efforts to retool its business, although the company has returned to profitability.

The company reported net income of US$25 million for the quarter that ended Oct. 31, up from a loss of $6 million from the same period a year earlier. Revenue, however, fell to $245 million from $288 million a year before.

By Jeremy Kirk, IDG News Service (London Bureau)

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