Ascential Software is set to extend its position as a supplier of data and media asset management solutions following the sale of the Informix database business to IBM and the conclusion of a global alliance agreement with Big Blue. After the conclusion of IBM`s acquisition of Informix for $1 billion, Informix Corporation will be renamed Ascential Software. As a result of the transaction, Ascential will have a deep reserve of cash to spend on research and development, which will translate into stronger product offerings.
In addition, IBM and Ascential have announced a global alliance that will see the companies work together to deliver business intelligence and digital asset management solutions to their customers.
"Through the sale of Informix to IBM, Ascential will gain the financial resources it needs to extend its already-strong position in the information asset management market. Customers and partners will benefit from a more powerful Ascential," says Julian Field, country manager at Ascential Software SA.
Field says the strategic alliance with IBM benefits Ascential by adding credibility to its product range, extending its sales and marketing reach, and opening up IBM`s large community of AS/400, S/390 and RS/6000 users (the range has since been consolidated as the eServer series) as a target market. IBM in turn gains a strong set of products that complements its existing e-business offerings.
In terms of the agreement, Ascential will integrate its DataStage product line with IBM`s DB2 Warehouse Manager, giving customers the ability to integrate data from virtually any source into a DB2-based data warehouse. In addition, Ascential`s media asset management offering, Media360, will become part of an IBM preferred solution. It will also support IBM`s AIX operating system and DB2 Universal Database.
This will allow customers to manage an array of unstructured digital assets including video, audio, images, documents and Web pages. IBM will market and resell these new solutions through its worldwide sales channel and Global Services organisation.
Ascential`s data integration products, DataStage and DataStage 390, will also be optimised for the IBM platform. DataStage for DB2 Warehouse Manager will perform the vital functions necessary to extract, transform and integrate data from a wide variety of sources and applications. Customers will benefit from a data integration solution optimised for their DB2 environment, providing a sold platform for customer relationship management, business intelligence and supply chain management applications.
"We have discussed this alliance with the local IBM subsidiary, and they are excited with the product range. We will be working closely with them to sell this set of solutions into the South African market," concludes Field.
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