Open-source is getting better and bigger. A growing trend in the business sector towards trusting open-source services has lead to a growth in the industry overall. This information was noted in a recent report by Accenture, and also confirmed by the exciting yearly performance of Red Hat, Inc.

The report shows geographical and industry stats on the growing adoption of open source offerings from the likes of Linux, which is also prepping for its biggest release in three years. Major distribution partner Red Hat has seen significant growth so far this year, with a gain in new customers, one of which is a very large partner, sealing an 8-figure deal. From Datanation,

“Among the big drivers for Red Hat’s growth the past year is the fact that existing customers are staying with Red Hat and renewing subscription at higher values. Whitehurst said during the company’s analyst call that Red Hat renewed all of its top 25 deals during the year at over 120 percent of their original value.”

The ability for products such as those offered through Red Hat to streamline business processes addresses a direct need in the enterprise sector. With shifting cost structures, a demand for efficiency and a trend towards technology-based operating and marketing practices, businesses are seeking more trustworthy open source solutions. From ReadWriteWeb,

“Senior management, training and insufficient open-source alternatives hinder further adoption. The biggest challenge is training. Half of the respondents from the public sector said training is a hindrance, compared with only 22 percent in financial services. Further, lack of senior management support appears to be a key reason given for not using open source software. Those yet to make the transition to open source also cite insufficient open source alternatives compared to proprietary software suites.”

As so much of a businesses practices and needs overlap with a technological process of some sort, the demand for enterprises isn’t going anywhere. The ability for open-source to remain on an upswing is another trend to be dealt with in the coming year. Several interjecting industries, from business mobile to corporate social networking, are contributing to this demand, providing opportunities to open-source platforms.