A lot of people are followers. Companies, being run by people, are no different. One of the most recent examples of this behaviour is the spate of Linux companies signing deals with Microsoft. With a few weeks we had Xandros, LG and Linspire all signed deals. It looked like that the growing tide of deals would overwhelm even the most steady CEOs and make signing a deal with Microsoft just part of running a Linux business.
That isn't going to happen.
Why? Within a few short days, Ubuntu, Mandriva and Red Hat have all said "No deal" (In Red Hat's case, this was a reiteration of a previous statement). The herd has changed direction. As with any herd, there will be a few breakaways, as Novell did last year when they signed their deal, but to all the other Linux companies out there, signing a deal will not be "just part of running a Linux business".
So, thank you Mark, Red Hat and Mandriva management. Your courage makes the world a safer place for all Linux companies and users.