IBM Announces Plans To Nearly Double The Size Of Its Solution Partnership Center in San Mateo
Growing Popularity of IBM Solution Developer Program Mandates Addition of 16,000 Sq.Ft. Dedicated to Free Porting and Testing of Commerical Software for IBM-Supported Platforms
San Mateo, CA (July 31, 1998) – . In the face of growing developer activity on IBM platforms, the company today announced plans to expand its Solution Partnership Center (SPC), here, from 17,500 to 33,500 square feet, providing free porting and testing services and classes to Bay Area software companies. The center is the flagship of nine worldwide SPCs run by the IBM Solution Developer Program, which saw 24 percent commercial membership growth to 22,000 in 1997, and is already up 10 percent in 1998.
Technical experts at the SPC work with software companies large and small to help them port their software to IBM platforms and test both finished products and proof of concepts across platforms such as S/390*, AS/400*, RS/6000*, Netfinity* (Windows NT**) and Java, including a dedicated Solution Studio for Java which can test a program across any IBM or non-IBM client or server. Under a recently announced deal with Intel, the
center will soon host an Application Solution Center for 32-bit Intel-oriented programs. The center also includes experts on leading IBM-supported software platforms such as Lotus Notes/Domino, DB2* Universal Database, MQSeries* and TX Series* Middleware, Java, IBM’s San Francisco Project and IBM Solutions for Windows NT.
“IBM understands what software companies need to grow,” said Patricia Meacham, director of Worldwide Solution Developer Marketing Programs, IBM. “What we offer them are broader business opportunities, faster time to market and a lower cost of doing business through programs ranging from the SPCs to the Software Vendor Marketing Partnership to free technical education and support programs. For an entrepreneurial company that can’t afford one of every server, the SPCs offer access with extra knowledgeable hands. For big-name software players, they provide an economical means to build to impressive e-business solutions linked to today’s enterprise and legacy and tomorrow’s
servers.”
“Through the years, our relationship with IBM and the resources provided us by the Solution Partnership Center have really helped lower our cost of doing business and allowed it to flourish,” said Joe Thomas, director of Channels and Alliances, Infospace. “With onsite technical support staff to handle questions and not having to invest in equipment, it saves us time and money which directly affects the bottom line.”
Craig Burbidge, product marketing manager, Pick Systems said, “Using the SPC really helped us broaden our business opportunities. We were able to use the SPC to benchmark test our database management system and those results were vital in continuing to provide quality service to our customers and to attract new ones.”
Malcolm Colton, vice president of marketing, Cloudscape, Inc. said, “Using the Solution Studio for Java to test JBMS really helped get our product to market faster. We were able to test whether it fit the “100% Pure Java” certification and when it did, were confident that it would exceed our customers’ standards. Without the help of the SPC, we would not have been able to test JBMS on all the platforms out there to ensure its cross platform capabilities. With all of the equipment at the center ready to go, it was a snap to test our application on everything there.”
The SPC in San Mateo, opened in 1995 has enabled a total of 548 commercial software applications to date for a total of 383 different software companies. In addition, 2,500 commercial developers have taken expert classes here taught by the developers from IBM labs who actually wrote code for established platforms such as DB2, MQSeries, VisualAge* for Java or IBM’s San Francisco project.
IBM Solution Developer Program
With more than 24,000 commercial members, the IBM Solution Developer Program is a worldwide program designed to help commercial software developers reduce development costs and take their products to market quickly. The program facilitates the development and sale of third-party software applications running on IBM hardware and software platforms by providing business services, technical services, marketing services and information services. The IBM Solution Developer Program offers developers no-charge software and tools, hardware discounts and leases, access to porting and testing facilities, on-line technical support, marketing assistance and much more. The program is focused on leading-edge technologies like Java, that enable developers to deliver complete e-business solutions to their customers.
Source: IBM