Virtualization ala KVM got a big boost this week when industry heavyweights Intel, IBM, HP, and Red Hat announced their new Open Virtualization Alliance. The effort is geared toward encouraging greater use of KVM as an open source virtualization solution. It’s also a shot across the bow of x86 virtualization leader VMware; it seems designed to erode VMware’s control over virtualization as well as put some pressure on their margins.

In a Reg article here, Red Hat’s VP of Cloud Computing Scott Crenshaw was very upfront about whittling VMware down to size. The other vendors, all solid past partners of VMware’s, didn’t make any VMware-specific comments; they talked about offering a wider range of choice for customers. This makes sense, given that Red Hat pushes KVM more than any other solution.

It’s also no surprise to see the server vendors and Intel remaining neutral – they’ll be happy to support whatever solution the end-user wants, but would probably prefer it if VMware wasn’t as powerful as it is now.

…well, to some extent at least. IBM announced an aggressive DB2 migration program aimed at Oracle Database users late last week (details here). They’ve put together a wide range of offerings – mostly free – designed to help customers figure out whether dumping Oracle for DB2 is the right move from a cost, technology, and performance standpoint.

Their timing is pretty good. The hubbub Oracle caused by dropping Itanium in April isn’t really paying off in the way that the company probably anticipated. Right after their announcement, we surveyed 450 enterprise customers (94% of whom use at least some Oracle products) to get their opinions on Oracle’s move and their general feelings about the company.

Customers in our recent survey of IT professionals have told us why they think Oracle discontinued porting to Itanium. But what do they think the company will do next? Here are their top responses. The alternative choice – there is…

Why DID Oracle drop Itanium? We weren’t sure either, so we asked. In our recent survey, we asked 450 enterprise IT pros – 94% of whom are Oracle customers – and they told us what they thought, in no uncertain…