SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 16, 1999--
Leaders in Storage and Networking Collaborate to
Deliver Open, Intelligent and Integrated SANs
3Com Corporation (NASDAQ:COMS) and StorageTek(R) (Storage
Technology Corp., NYSE:STK) today announced a wide-ranging alliance
designed to help companies manage the digital information explosion.
Tapping StorageTek's strengths in storage hardware and software
and 3COM's leadership in network systems and network management, the
two companies plan to accelerate the delivery and deployment of
storage area network (SAN) solutions -- an emerging architecture that
enables "anytime/anywhere" access to information and vastly simplifies
storage asset management.
The key focus of the relationship is to deliver on the promise of
storage networking and deliver open SAN solutions to the enterprise.
This includes providing turnkey solutions to customers that are
completely interoperable, tested and certified. Furthermore, by
combining SAN software, hardware and professional services, StorageTek
and 3Com are expected to dramatically reduce customer risk and time to
market for "open, intelligent and integrated"(TM) SANs. The
3Com/StorageTek alliance spans many areas of collaboration, including
testing and certification of the respective companies' offerings for
Fibre Channel SAN deployments, joint sponsorship of open standards for
SANs, and may be expanded to include co-marketing, cooperative sales,
service and support and joint technology development.
Initially, StorageTek and 3Com will ensure interoperability of
3Com's Host Bus Adapter (HBA) with StorageTek's StorageNet(TM) Access
Hub, Fibre Channel Hub 1000 and Fibre Channel Switch 4000, as well as
StorageTek's disk arrays and tape libraries. By embedding the 3Com HBA
into its SAN product portfolio, StorageTek is able to construct and
deliver complete, application-oriented solutions.
Committed to "Open, Intelligent and Integrated" Storage Area Networks
Both StorageTek and 3Com oppose proprietary architectures and are
committed to open products that support customers' varied business
needs, existing processes and technology investments. The power and
market momentum created through the cooperation and coordination of
3Com and StorageTek is expected to catalyze market alignment around
open standards for Fibre Channel and SAN-oriented technologies.
"Customers should rapidly reap the benefits of this strategic
alliance," said David E. Weiss, StorageTek chairman, president and
chief executive officer. "This relationship is expected to have a
resounding impact on device interoperability and open standards, while
ensuring near-term availability of SAN-based solutions that deliver
clear business benefits."
"This past November, 3Com became the first networking company to
enter the SAN market. At that time, we stated the importance of
collaboration with credible enterprise storage vendors to bring forth
truly interoperable solutions," said Eric Benhamou, 3Com chairman and
CEO. "3Com's collaboration with StorageTek brings significant
resources and value that will result in the near-term delivery of
integrated, application-oriented SAN solutions carrying the
StorageConnect/StorageNet logo. This co-certification will yield the
end-to-end interoperability that enterprise customers demand."
Product Interoperability Testing is Underway
The companies' first order of business is to align 3Com's
StorageConnect(TM) compatibility program and StorageTek's recently
announced compatibility program to create a cooperative certification
of their respective initiatives. Through cross-certification,
StorageTek and 3Com intend to assure customers of end-to-end
interoperability. With its entrance into the SAN market, 3Com has
articulated its commitment to educating storage companies and the
industry at large about networking; promoting standards; and
aggressively driving the introduction of breakthrough technologies for
SANs. StorageTek's complementary vision encompasses all aspects of
storage and connectivity, emphasizing information-centric SAN
architectures. This vision places intelligence in the network devices
to maximize manageability and scalability while avoiding proprietary
vendor lock-in.
To help customers recognize the business value of SANs and
accelerate market delivery, both companies have invested heavily in
testing facilities to evaluate hardware and software configurations in
heterogeneous environments (see supporting StorageTek announcement
issued today, "StorageTek Launches Multi-million Dollar Lab Dedicated
to Testing, Certifying Open Storage Area Networks"). This relationship
will initially focus on the joint testing and certification of 3Com's
StorageConnect products with StorageTek's tape and disk storage,
connectivity devices and storage management software, resulting in the
near-term delivery of integrated, application-oriented SAN solutions.
StorageTek is a founding member of the Storage Networking
Industry Association (SNIA) and has been actively engineering the open
industry framework endorsed by this consortium of more than 100
members. StorageTek is also a member of the Fibre Channel Community
(FClC), the Fibre Channel Association (FCA) and the StoreX Consortium.
Together, StorageTek and 3Com intend to lead the charge for open
standards in storage management, enabling customers to choose the
best-in-class components that can be integrated into a standard
framework.
Beyond joint testing and delivery of open SAN solutions, 3Com and
StorageTek plan to explore and develop new technologies together to
expand the scope and application of SANs across enterprise
environments. The joint roadmap includes technology sharing and
certification, and may be expanded into development of new SAN
technologies that will embrace heterogeneous, switched environments,
extended SAN management and automated data movement.
Each of the SAN solutions deployed as part of this alliance will
be maintained by a proposed integrated 3Com/StorageTek support
infrastructure. This infrastructure leverages the core skills of both
organizations in a seamless fashion to provide the highest level of
availability for SAN environments.
The SAN Opportunity
International Data Corp. (IDC) forecasts suggest that storage
networks will account for 37 percent of all external storage spending
by 2002. That will amount to a SAN market of roughly $11 billion.
Confirming these estimates, a recent survey of 400 U.S. chief
information officers (CIOs) conducted by Salomon Smith Barney found
that 95 percent of respondents believe Fibre Channel will be the
primary interconnect for all new storage by 2001.
The promises of SANs are:
o Lower cost of ownership
o Improved performance
o Better protection
o Minimized downtime
o Centralized management
By employing an open approach based on embedded, network
intelligence, users get the added benefits of:
o Selecting best-of-breed systems
o Protecting investments in existing infrastructure
o Avoiding lock-in to proprietary disk technologies
o Improving performance, reliability, availability and
scalability through distributed storage management
About the 3Com StorageConnect(TM) Compatibility Program
Addressing the need for pre-tested, interoperable Fibre Channel
storage area network (SAN) solutions, the 3Com StorageConnect
compatibility program is ensuring the delivery of fully interoperable
SAN solutions and hardware to end-users today. Together with storage
hardware and software vendor participants, the 3Com StorageConnect
compatibility program provides for multiple levels of hardware
compatibility and SAN-enabling software and applications
interoperability testing. The focal point of the program is 3Com's
StorageConnect compatibility lab, located at 3Com's corporate
headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif.
About 3Com Corporation
With more than 200 million customers worldwide, 3Com Corporation
connects more people to information in more ways than any other
networking company. 3Com delivers innovative information access
products and network system solutions to large, medium and small
enterprises; carriers and network service providers; PC OEMs; and
consumers. 3Com-More connected.(TM) For further information, visit
3Com's World Wide Web site at www.3com.com or the press site at
www.3com.com/pressbox.
About StorageTek
StorageTek is the preeminent provider of network storage. The
company's strategy is to provide "open, intelligent and
integrated"(TM) solutions that combine storage products, storage
management software and storage services. StorageTek solutions help
customers collect, move, store, share and protect all types of digital
content on platforms ranging from laptops to enterprise servers. The
company, with headquarters in Louisville, Colo., reported revenue of
$2.3 billion in 1998. Information on StorageTek is available on the
World Wide Web at www.storagetek.com or phone 1-800/786-7835.
|
