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Linux is becoming a buzzword not only in the computer world but also the Internet market. The free operating system, developed originally for home PCs, now runs on a variety of platforms, including PowerPC, Macintosh, Amiga and many others.

Along with the rapid development of Linux on the Internet scene, a horde of Linux-based software programs is moving to the center stage of the online market.

Among them is MailStudio 2000, an easy-to-use and low-priced e-mail server developed by 3R Soft, Inc., which is gaining increasing popularity at home and abroad.

As far as e-mail is concerned, Jeason Yeu, chief executive of the company, saw the writing on the wall. Seeing the coming of the age of Linux, he worked out computer communication software based on the operating system.

"The Internet means communication. Its base can be boiled down to Linux. With the wider use of the Internet throughout the world, e-mail has become more important than search for information," Yeu said in an interview with The Korea Herald.

"When e-mail is applied to business management, it can help sharply raise organizational efficiency. Job instructions, reports and evaluations can be made by e-mail. If job results are accumulated, assorted and made available by e-mail as a database accessible to all employees, they will be an excellent group-ware," he said.

In the age of knowledge and information, people have to get together in one place only when they are going to take certain decisions. All other jobs could be instructed online, and their results could be fed back by e-mail.

"Linux-based e-mail servers are much cheaper than Unix-based ones. Despite their moderate price, they are fast, easy-to-use and flexible," he said.

He predicted that the growth of the Internet market would be more prominent in small and mid-sized companies than in large ones, which have set up server systems of their own.

"The market prospect for Linux-based e-mail is very bright, and MailStudio 2000 is the right solution to those small and mid-sized organizations seeking to establish e-mail systems in their names" he said.

MailStudio 2000, a Linux-based e-mail server, is also used by many Internet service providers, including Daum Communication and Netian to provide their respective e-mail services.

The server provides web-based e-mail service for users, and is accessible through web browsers.

He sets his sight at Asia as a main target market of this year. The Asian market is like a promising land for him, who is convinced that Korea is a technologically advanced and also fast growing market in Asia as far as the Internet is concerned.

"The population of the Internet users is increasing explosively in Korea, and high-speed Internet lines are being laid fast throughout the country," Yeu said. "The growth of Linux use is second only to that of the United States."

For now, the Asian market looks small, compared by the U.S. and European markets, but its growth potential is huge, he said, citing the large population of Asians who are trying to catch up with developed countries in areas relating to the Internet.

Asia accounts for about 5 percent of the world Internet market, with the United States (80 percent) and Europe (10 percent).

"To become the best and largest Internet messaging company in Asia, 3R Soft plans to establish its overseas joint ventures in Japan and China this year. Their operations will be thoroughly localized," he said.

As a result of its efforts to strengthen overseas marketing, 3R Soft recently exported 1,000 sets of MailStudio 2000 to the United States, becoming the first Korean firm to export domestically developed Linux-based software.

Separately from the exports to the United States, the English version of MailStudio 2000 has been sold throughout the world at a web site (www.mailstudio.com). The monthly online sales of the product reach about $100,000.

Currently, MailStudio 2000 is applied in about 50 domestic and foreign colleges and universities, more than 20 government organizations and businesses, and scores of domestic and foreign portal sites.

Major customers of MailStudio 2000 package software include Netian.com (1.5 million users), NAVER.com, intz.com, Edubox.com, Inside U, Chosun Ilbo, MBC, Yonhap News Agency.

The accumulated number of e-mail boxes operating on MailStudio 2000 has exceeded 6 million.

It is useful particularly for Internet content providers offering e-mail services to their customers, and for small work places seeking to set up their own e-mail systems with a modest budget.

For the first time as a Linux-based software developed in Asia, MailStudio 2000 is provided to a world-leading Linux firm as a pre-installed Linux 6.1 bundle. Other users of MailStudio 2000 Bundle include DACOM Cobalt server, IBM Netfinity server, Corel Netwinder, Alzza Linux 6.0, Power Linux 6.0.

"3R Soft has a competitive advantage in Korea. Large U.S. Internet firms will have hard time competing against Korean rivals in Korea. It will take more time solving technical problems, because they are far away from Korea," he said.

He said that he would develop the company into a provider of unified messaging service, which covers communication between mobile phones, pagers and fax machines not to mention computers.

The company posted explosive sales growth figures for the last two quarters of last year. It marked about a five-fold increase from 204 million won in the third quarter to 1.04 billion won in the fourth quarter. 3R Soft expects its sales year-on-year growth to hit over 1,000 percent this year.