Here is an article I don't think has been posted yet re an interview that Cowpland gave to VAR Aug 1/97. A lot of it has been rehashed before but it is still P.R. work that has to be done.
The Man Who Would Be KING -- Corel's Cowpland
describes his strategy to become the Microsoft of Java
By Hillary Rettig
Larry Ellison, Jim Barksdale...Michael Cowpland?
If you haven't heard ofCowpland, you will soon. He's founder and CEO of
Ottawa-based Corel Corp.-until now, a niche provider of graphics software,
but fast emerging as one of Microsoft's toughest competitors on the
Internet/Java front. Cowpland believes Java will supplant Windows as the
universal platform: When that happens, he plans to be ready as the premier
Java applications provider, the "Microsoft of Java," as he puts it. This may
sound like hype until you consider the short list of what Corel has
accomplished in just the past year and a half. In March 1996, it bought the
WordPerfect franchise from Novell for just $157 million-around a tenth of
what Novell paid for it just two years earlier. Then, it managed to allay users'
fears by bringing out not one, but two, substantial upgrades.
In April, Corel announced a beta version of the first office-productivity suite
written entirely in Java, Corel Office for Java. And in June, it spun off Corel
Computer Corp., which will ship one of the first network computers, the
Corel Video Network Computer (VNC). Throughout it all, the company has
maintained its lead in its traditional market with new releases of CorelDRAW
and a variety of other products.
Consider, also, Cowpland's background. An engineer with a doctorate in
telecommunications, he was a co-founder and president of Ottawa-based
Mitel Corp., a $500 million PBX vendor. Later, he founded Corel (an
abbreviation for Cowpland Research Laboratories) as a systems integrator.
Since 1989, the year Corel went public, annual revenue has grown from
roughly $10 million to $334 million.
The one thing Cowpland hasn't done yet is build a strong VAR channel. This
is likely the result of Corel's traditional focus on retail and direct sales. Will
this change now that the company is moving into Java? Hillary Rettig,
VARBusiness' technology editor, recently interviewed Cowpland on this and
other points.
VARBusiness: About five years ago, Corel and Microsoft were "best
buddies." How would you characterize the relationship now?
Cowpland: We were the first vendor, after Microsoft, to have applications
ready for Windows 3.0 and 3.1. Microsoft used CorelDRAW to
demonstrate that the platform could support heavy-duty applications. Now,
the relationship is a mixed bag. It still likes us for developing in Windows, but
doesn't like that we're developing in Java.
VB:Will Java eradicate the traditional "fat" office suite?
Cowpland: Yes. It's going to become the platform and turn Windows into
just one flavor the way Unix is today. It could happen as early as next year.
The center of gravity has shifted incredibly in the past 12 months, and people
are already referring to Windows as the legacy platform.
VB:Who is referring to Windows as legacy?
Cowpland: The big enterprises are beginning to look at doing all their work in
Java. That way, they only need to do it once. Right now, they have to port
everything to 26 different platforms, so the amount of work they'll save by
moving to Java is immense.
VB:How does Java benefit the independent developers?
Cowpland: Before, you had to develop to a particular platform. Now, you
can write in Java, and the software will flow back and forth between
platforms. That means a bigger market. Java will also enliven the Unix
platform, and it's going to save the Macintosh, since Mac users will no longer
be starved for applications.
VB:Who would you say are the early adopters for Java?
Cowpland: We're seeing them everywhere. On the investment banker's side,
for instance, Nomura did a study showing that 80 percent of their computers
could be network computers (NCs) running Java. Nortel did their own study
and came up with 50 percent.
VB:What would Corel's role be in an "all-Java" world?
Cowpland: We're positioning ourselves as the Microsoft of Java. We're
putting 50 percent of our development effort into it, and 50 percent into
Windows. For a while, anyway, there will be two key platforms. In a couple
of years, though, everything will be Java.
VB:And you'll be the preeminent applications provider?
Cowpland: Yes, because we're out in front. Also, because of our speed of
development. We've got a 12-month development cycle for our office suite;
Microsoft is still at 24 months, and Lotus, 36.
VB:What would you consider to be your other competitive advantages?
Cowpland: The agility. There's no point in moving rapidly in the wrong
direction. We have weekly heads-up meetings to see where things are going,
so we can redeploy resources accordingly.
VB:Your competitors are probably holding meetings, too.
Cowpland: The difference between us and some of the competition is that we
expect our managers to understand the technology. Some companies get to
the point where it's all public relations, juggling people around and organizing
things. Our managers know what they're talking about in terms of technology.
VB:Microsoft's Office97 has been poorly received, and people have been
particularly critical of Word For Windows' incompatible file format. Was that
a lucky break for you?
Cowpland: It gives us a window of opportunity. You'll see us advertising
heavily to take advantage of that.
VB:Are your ads going to be "attack ads" like the database vendors use?
Cowpland: (laughing) It won't be a frontal assault. It will be 95 percent
pointing out our benefits, but also pointing out the file format problems.
VB:Any guesses as to why Microsoft blundered?
Cowpland: I think we rushed it. [Microsoft] realized it had competition, so it
couldn't keep on coasting.
VB:What are Microsoft's vulnerabilities?
Cowpland: It's distracted. It's into television, cable and lots of other things.
It's also hamstrung by the fact that it can't move too soon into Java because
then it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
VB:Some say Microsoft has put itself in a position of having no friends.
Would you say that's an accurate characterization?
Cowpland: Yes.
VB:Do you see Java as inevitable?
Cowpland: Yes. It's like a tidal wave-you don't see anybody, other than
Microsoft, who doesn't want it to succeed.
VB:What about the traditional criticisms of Java-the slowness, the lack of
tools? What about Microsoft's criticism that cross-platform solutions are
inevitably "least common denominator?"
Cowpland: The performance issues and lack of tools will be addressed by
the end of the year with Java V. 1.1 and the Java Foundation Classes. As for
least common denominator, if you're doing something highly sophisticated,
you can always use native code. But if you're talking basic functionality-the
functionality most people need-Java is fine. A lot of the applications that are
sold today are filled with features no one needs or uses.
VB:What's to say that Netscape won't become a de facto standard like
Microsoft? It's in the applications business as well, and since it owns the
browser, might it not parlay that into owning the Java desktop?
Cowpland: It's more than likely Microsoft will win the browser war, since it's
giving it away for free. Netscape will hold out for a long time, but after that
it's going to get all its money from servers.
VB:Well, then, won't you be competing with Microsoft again, just on Java?
Cowpland: It will be tougher for it this time, because the whole platform is
open and communications-centric. Microsoft is already trying to be a bit of a
spoiler, saying, "Let's mix a little ActiveX in with Java and spoil the standard."
The rest of the industry is watching that like a hawk and resisting.
VB:What does "communications centric" mean?
Cowpland: It means that the information resides in a central corporate
directory, and data automatically flows through the system. The
communications system determines the infrastructure, which determines the
application.
VB:What role do the small developers and ISVs play in all this?
Cowpland: There will be many more vertical opportunities. There'll be a huge
opportunity in integrating the building blocks, and many more blocks to
choose from.
VB:Reusability in any object model has been a problem. Developers say that
by the time you define an object for reuse, you might as well write from
scratch.
Cowpland: Well, we'll find out with JavaBeans, won't we? My guess is you'll
probably be working with sets of Beans from one source-such as Corel
Beans-rather than mixing and matching Beans from different sources.
VB:Microsoft has a strong reseller program in place to encourage developers
to use ActiveX or, maybe later on, its own JavaBeans. Are you going to be
building a developer program of your own?
Cowpland: The point is this: We can't compete with that because Microsoft
has already got that under way. We're better off jumping into a new
paradigm. We'll be wanting people to use our JavaBeans to extend their
vertical applications. As those kinds of people emerge, we will support them.
Corel is very responsive, and we turn on a dime. So, therefore, it is possible
we could develop some kind of program targeted at the individual developer.
VB:If I'm a Java programmer, why would I use your Beans as opposed to
someone else's?
Cowpland: Because we'll have a very comprehensive set of Beans with
strong branding. The people using them would know what quality and
features to expect.
VB:Is there a downside to Java for developers?
Cowpland: The downside of any open system is that you lose your
annuity-meaning, customers are freer to shop around. So things are going to
get more competitive. The only answer is to show up at the beginning and get
a head start. If I were starting out, I'd be getting into Java in a big way.
VB:There's been a backlash against the thin client. Doesn't that worry you?
Cowpland: We don't believe in really thin. We believe in the right size client
that gives you all the satisfaction of Windows, plus a lot more. We place it at
around a 200-MHz Pentium.
VB:Meaning, your new Corel Video Network Computer?
Cowpland: Right. We're using Digital's StrongARM chip, which offers
200-MHz-equivalent speed with less power requirements and less heat.
VB:Why did you feel it necessary to create your own NC?
Cowpland: We did that because we have a vested interest in making the
software look really good. We want people to jump on it.
VB:What will the maintenance costs be?
Cowpland: Half that of a Windows unit-roughly $6,000 per year compared
with $12,000. The savings come mainly from having a single point of control
for software upgrades and maintenance-and, also, from not having to do as
many upgrades because most of the features will reside on the server.
VB:Why video?
Cowpland: We think it's going to be a checklist feature people will want
soon. The bandwidth will become available.
VB:Can you tell us how your engineering and telecommunications
background influences the way you look at the computer market?
Cowpland: Engineering teaches you to be pragmatic-to look at the feasibility
of projects and their usefulness. It helps you with evaluating emerging
technologies and sorting out the worthwhile stuff from the noise. Some things
come on the scene and sound impressive, but if you have good experience,
you can dismiss them as being fads.
VB:Which is what you did with Windows and OS/2.
Cowpland: Certainly. We didn't jump on the OS/2 bandwagon, and yet
Lotus and WordPerfect and SPC [Software Publishing Corp., publishers of
Harvard Graphics] all did. That enabled us to get a lead in Windows.
VB:Ten years ago, Corel was a systems integrator with roughly $10 million
in revenue. Now, you're at $334 million. Many of our readers are where you
were then, and want to get to where you are now. What advice do you have
for them?
Cowpland: It's good to learn the business by selling a total solution including
hardware. But if you want to expand beyond your local market, you need to
uncover your pure value-add and package it. This usually means software.
As long as you're focused on the pure value-add, you'll do well.
---
At a Glance
Corel Corp.
Ottawa, Ontario
(613) 728-8200
www.corel.com
Founded: 1985
Went Public: 1989
1996 Revenue: $334,245,000
Major Products: CorelDRAW, WordPerfect Suite, Office for Java,
WebMaster Suite, CorelVideo, Video Network Computer (VNC)
Management: Michael C.J. Cowpland, chairman, president and CEO; Eid
Eid, president, Corel Computer Corp.; Norm McConkey, corporate reseller
accounts manager
Copyright (c) 1997 CMP Media Inc. |
