Oracle is to release its own Linux distribution aimed at the Japanese business computing market. And next month it will form a subsidiary to market and develop both the open source OS and services based around it. The Miracle Linux Corporation will begin operating in early June with 20 employees and Y620 million ($5.87 million) of Oracle money to play with, according to the Nikkei newswire. The company itself will be jointly owned by Oracle, NEC and TurboLinux, the last two each owning around 14 per cent of Miracle Linux. TurboLinux will also supply the core OS product, which Miracle Linux will extend to tie it more closely into Oracle's Oracle 8i RDBMS, which it will also sell and support. Miracle Linux will also offer training and consultancy services focusing on its Linux distribution and the database. Miracle Linux will also develop a version of its eponymous distro that will run on Intel's Itanium processor. NEC's part in the plan is to promote Miracle Linux by bundling its Linux release on its Express 8500 server line. It will also be providing system integration and services based on its hardware and Miracle Linux's software. Miracle Linux's goal is to build up sales of Y220 million ($2.09 million) during its first year of operation, rising to Y1.3 billion ($12.34 billion) by 2004. At that point the operation should move into the black. ®