Details emerge on
Compaq-Unisys server pact
By Joe Wilcox
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
February 15, 2000, 3:50 p.m. PT
Compaq is calling on another computer company for its
most powerful Windows 2000 machines instead of
building its own.
As previously reported, Compaq Computer has cut a deal with
Unisys for 32-processor server
computers running Microsoft's
new operating system. Under
terms of the agreement,
Compaq will resell the servers
under its ProLiant brand, but
Unisys will make them.
Compaq's chief executive
Michael Capellas will announce
the plan at a keynote address
tonight in San Francisco,
sources said.
Blue Bell, Penn.-based Unisys,
which is know more for its
services business, has been
developing the technology
behind the servers for more
than two years. They will run Windows 2000 Data Center
Server, which is expected to ship in about 120 days.
Compaq and Unisys are still hammering final details but are
expected to reach a final agreement within 60 days. Sources
close to the deal said Microsoft pressed hard for the
announcement during the three-day Windows launch event.
The arrangement is expected to generate an additional $400
million in revenue for Unisys during the next two years.
Compaq plans to ship the first 32-way ProLiant servers in the
second half of the year.
The deal could be a big boost for Windows 2000 as it
competes alongside large Unix servers from Sun and other
computer makers.
The arrangement also gives Compaq a foothold against IBM,
which in September acquired Sequent. Sequent makes a
competing technology to that used by Unisys, which IBM has
been quickly integrating in its server products.
Unisys' server technology, known as Cellular MultiProcessing,
brings its own strengths, such as the ability
to run disparate operating systems, such
as Windows 2000 and Unix, on the same
system. This could be attractive to larger
corporations looking for an inexpensive way
of supporting existing Unix installations,
while investing in a server running Windows
2000.
The deal is potentially a big boost for Unisys, which has an
attractive technology but doesn't sell large volumes of servers,
an area where Compaq excels. In 1999, the Houston-based
computer maker accounted for 31 percent of all server revenue,
according to International Data Corp.
In conjunction with the Unisys announcement, Capellas will
outline a broad change in server strategy during his 6:30 p.m.
PST keynote.
Dubbed "eGeneration," the strategy is a three-phase
advancement in Compaq's effort to deliver more robust
Intel-based servers to corporate customers.
The launch of eight-processor ProLiant servers in August was
phase one. Adding 32-processor servers later this year will
mark the second phase. The final phase will focus on
developing "total solutions" around 32-processor servers and
Compaq StorageWorks systems and services.
It is unclear what impact the Unisys deal could have on
Compaq's next-generation AlphaServer, code-named Wildfire,
which is scheduled to begin shipping next month. Compaq last
month told financial analysts it expects Wildfire to
generate $1 billion in revenue this year. |
