Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Development
    • Development

    Unix Vendors Change Tack

    By
    eWEEK EDITORS
    -
    April 15, 2002
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      Competition in the midrange Unix server market is heating up as top vendors such as Sun Microsystems Inc. and IBM shift from focusing on $1 million-plus high-end systems that were popular during the Internets boom years to less pricey boxes more in tune with the constrained budgets of corporate buyers.

      Underscoring the strategy shift, three of the four largest Unix server makers promoted new systems aimed at the midrange market, defined as servers selling from $100,000 to $1 million, according to International Data Corp., in Framingham, Mass.

      For customers, the intensifying competition is resulting in more attractive prices—for example, Sun slashed costs on its Unix servers up to 41 percent last week—which is welcome news to systems managers struggling with limits on spending.

      “Its very tight right now,” said Robert Cancilla, director of corporate systems planning for Republic Indemnity Co. of America Inc., in Encino, Calif., which utilizes IBM mainframes. “We are buying, but to purchase anything we need to deal with our senior management committee, and we have to demonstrate a heavy-duty return on the investment in order to fund a project.”

      In response to such concerns, Unix vendors are integrating some of their most advanced technologies into less costly systems to make them more attractive to customers.

      “Until a year and a half ago, you did not see such things as partitioning in the midrange Unix servers; it was pretty much exclusive to the high end,” said Jean Bozman, an analyst at IDC, in San Jose, Calif. “But now all the major players are offering it.”

      Sun executives, in announcing a new $750,000 52-way Sun Fire 12K last week, said the Palo Alto, Calif., company is determined to make inroads in the midrange market, where it has lagged behind Hewlett-Packard Co., of Palo Alto, Calif., and IBM, according to IDC.

      “Its a brand-new market for Sun to go and attack,” said Clark Masters, general manager for Suns Enterprise Systems Products. “Its been a bastion of success for HP and IBM. Now we plan to go right at them.”

      While Sun lags in midrange sales, the company is still the leader in global Unix sales, which totaled $22.3 billion last year. Specifically, Sun had a 30.7 percent share of the market—based on revenues—HP had 25.3 percent, IBM had 22.5 percent and Compaq Computer Corp. had 7.7 percent.

      IBM, of Armonk, N.Y., which has been aggressively attacking Sun in the Unix space, last week introduced the 16-way eSeries p670, a smaller version of its top-of-the-line p690, unveiled in October, that features the companys new Power4 processors and will sell for between $180,000 and $535,000, depending on how it is configured.

      In addition to touting its technology, IBM took aim at Sun on pricing, contending the p670 will cost up to 40 percent less than Sun servers offering similar performance.

      Midrange market leader HP announced its latest product offering in the segment last month, introducing the eight-way rp7410 priced at about $250,000 when fully configured.

      While Houston-based Compaq had no new products, the company did disclose last week that it has begun piloting Unix systems featuring a newer version of its Alpha processor, known as the EV7. The processor will be introduced to the market late this year in an eight-way server targeted at the midrange market.

      eWEEK EDITORS
      eWeek editors publish top thought leaders and leading experts in emerging technology across a wide variety of Enterprise B2B sectors. Our focus is providing actionable information for today’s technology decision makers.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Applications

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      Applications

      Kyndryl’s Nicolas Sekkaki on Handling AI and...

      James Maguire - November 9, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nicolas Sekkaki, Group Practice Leader for Applications, Data and AI at Kyndryl, about how companies can boost both their AI and...
      Read more
      Cloud

      IGEL CEO Jed Ayres on Edge and...

      James Maguire - June 14, 2022 0
      I spoke with Jed Ayres, CEO of IGEL, about the endpoint sector, and an open source OS for the cloud; we also spoke about...
      Read more
      IT Management

      Intuit’s Nhung Ho on AI for the...

      James Maguire - May 13, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nhung Ho, Vice President of AI at Intuit, about adoption of AI in the small and medium-sized business market, and how...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2022 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×