HANG ON TO YOUR HATS
Business Wire RED HAT AND DELL EXTEND STRATEGIC ALLIANCE; COMPANIES SIGN WORLDWIDE SERVICE AND SUPPORT AGREEMENT; DELL TO FACTORY-INSTALL RED HAT LINUX ON ENTIRE SERVER LINE BUSINESS/TECHNOLOGY EDITORS
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RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 6, 1999--Red
Hat(R), Inc. (NASDAQ:RHAT.O), the leading provider of open source
solutions, and Dell Computer Corporation (NASDAQ:DELL.O), the world's
leading direct computer systems company and a leading provider of
servers for the Internet infrastructure, today extended their
strategic alliance with a worldwide service and support agreement and
a commitment from Dell to factory-install Red Hat Linux on all future
and currently shipping Dell(R) PowerEdge(R) server models.
Dell, the number No. 2 PC server provider worldwide(1), was the
first major systems vendor to factory-install Red Hat Linux on its
servers and workstations. With today's announcement, Dell becomes the
first major systems vendor to factory-install Red Hat Linux across its
entire server line, making the PowerEdge brand even more attractive as
a platform on which to build Internet-based business activities.
Factory installation of an operating system (OS) customizes each
server to exact customer specifications, which can save companies time
and money and ultimately speed the installation and deployment of
systems once they reach the customer location. Dell continues to offer
factory installation of Red Hat Linux across selected configurations
of its workstations and desktop PCs.
"The Dell 'seal-of-approval' is important in advancing
Linux-based OSes in the enterprise space," said Matthew Szulik,
president and CEO of Red Hat. "Dell continues to lead all server
providers in offering Red Hat Linux-based platforms, and with today's
announcement, adds worldwide service and support to its Linux
capabilities. We're pleased that customers can look to Dell for a
'one-stop-shop' customized Red Hat Linux solution."
"Over the last year, we've seen increasing demand for Red Hat
Linux, particularly from Internet Service Providers, government
agencies, universities and businesses of all sizes," said Jack Steeg,
vice president of alliances, Dell Computer Corporation's Enterprise
Systems Group. "Our shipments of Red Hat Linux have more than doubled
over the past quarter and we expect this trend to continue and even
accelerate as the adoption and acceptance of Linux as a mainstream
operating system increases significantly."
"We operate our entire business, providing seasonal and holiday
home decor products and resources over the web, on Dell PowerEdge
servers and Red Hat Linux," said Justin Anderson, chief information
officer for iCelebrate.com. "Beginning with Halloween, we are in the
midst of that time of year where we expect our heaviest server
traffic. The Dell-Red Hat combination is a cost-effective solution
that has reliably kept our Web site humming."
The worldwide service and support agreement announced today is a
first for Red Hat and Dell. The agreement provides Dell customers with
a combination of free and discounted services and support and will
help improve their ownership experience. With this agreement, Dell's
global customers can now get service and support for Red Hat Linux in
all the major business regions of the world and all Dell customers
using Red Hat Linux can expect increased levels of service and support
from Dell and Red Hat. As part of its continued focus on Linux service
and support, Red Hat recently opened a series of customer support
centers to provide support for Europe, Middle East, Africa, Japan and
the Asia Pacific region.
These new resources will assist PowerEdge server customers by
providing Red Hat Linux support in native languages. The agreement
offers Dell customers 90 days of Web and phone support from Red Hat;
discounted Red Hat professional services, including installation
assistance where necessary; and 180 days of Red Hat subscription
services, which automatically notify administrators via email of new
OS versions and patches.
As an additional part of the extended strategic alliance, Dell
and Red Hat have committed engineering resources toward ensuring that
Red Hat Linux runs optimally on Dell PowerEdge servers and associated
peripherals. All Dell PowerEdge servers are Red Hat tested and
certified, and are ready for customer use out-of-the-box.
About Red Hat Services
From installation and configuration support to certification
programs to consulting, Red Hat services set a new standard for
enterprise-level support for Linux-based operating systems. Red Hat
continues to grow its support offerings, including the international
expansion of its popular Red Hat Certified Engineer training and
certification courses for Red Hat Linux. Red Hat also offers Developer
Training courses.
With more than 350 expert consultants, Red Hat and its partners
offer Red Hat Linux consulting services, including: on-site
consulting; strategy formation; planning; evaluation; classification
and organization; training; implementation; recurring operations and
audit. Red Hat Linux-based enterprise IT operations can choose
anything from initial installation help to full, ongoing outsourced
management of their complete Linux-based information management
operation. Red Hat offers all the services needed to successfully
install, integrate, manage and support open source solutions in
today's rapidly growing enterprises.
Enterprises such as AutoZone and Burlington Coat Factory
Warehouse Corporation have also chosen Red Hat for services. For more
information about Red Hat services and support solutions, see
www.redhat.com/products/support_solutions.html.
Pricing and Availability for Dell PowerEdge Servers
Dell PowerEdge servers with Red Hat Linux 6.1 factory installed
are available in English today worldwide. Dell expects to factory
-install and support other languages of the Red Hat Linux operating
system in the coming months. Pricing depends upon customer-specified
configurations. Information on Dell and its products can be obtained
through its toll-free number 1-800-388-8542 or by accessing the Dell
World Wide Web site at www.dell.com.
About Red Hat, Inc.
Founded in 1994, Red Hat (NASDAQ:RHAT.O) is the market leader in
open source operating system (OS) software, services and information.
Along with its award-winning open source Red Hat Linux OS, Red Hat
offers a full line of services, including telephone support, on-site
consulting, developer training, certification programs and priority
access updates, making Red Hat a leading resource for knowledgeable,
innovative, mission-critical open source solutions. Red Hat shares all
of its software innovations freely with the open source community
under the GNU General Public License (GPL). The Official Red Hat Linux
OS and related services are available directly from the company and
through its partner, distributor and reseller programs. Red Hat is
based in Research Triangle Park, N.C. and has offices worldwide. Visit
Red Hat on the Web at www.redhat.com. For investor inquiries, contact
Lippert/Heilshorn at (212) 838-3777.
LINUX is a trademark of Linus Torvalds. RED HAT is a registered
trademark of Red Hat, Inc. All other names and trademarks are the
property of their respective owners. |
