In one of the strongest endorsements of Linux as a viable mid-range business platform to date, Sage and IBM have inked an Africa-wide agreement to deliver Sage's business management solutions (BMS) on IBM's Linux-running hardware.
Sage is one the largest supplier of BMS and related products and services to small to medium businesses (SMBs) in the world. As such, this news is significant in a number of ways.
"It's the most serious collaboration between Sage and IBM to date. And it demonstrates that we believe the open source platform is capable of truly supporting a business, as opposed to just being used for development," explains Ashley Ellington, the divisional director for Africa at Sage.
"It's also the first time that the IBM server customer base - and the business partner channel - has had dedicated access to Sage's BMS solutions. Some [perhaps many] of these mid-market companies are not holistically managing their finance, distribution, manufacturing and service operations. The Linux-version of Line 500 lets them do that. And because it's available now, they can make the move as soon as they're ready."
One part of the drive will see the companies focusing on traditional 'Wintel' users in SMBs. For this market - defined as a company with approximately 50 or more users - Sage Line 500 will be made available for Linux on IBM's Intel-based xSeries servers.
The other part caters for larger enterprise users at the upper end of the mid-market. For these companies, Line 500 for Linux will be available on IBM iSeries (previously AS/400) and PA-RISC-based pSeries servers.
The Informix database will be supported by Line 500 on the xSeries and pSeries; DB2 will be supported on iSeries.
The solutions will be delivered through IBM's and Sage's business partner channel. While a number of these companies are already certified to resell IBM and Sage solutions, some will need to undergo certification. However, Walter Longwe, the territory solutions and services leader at IBM SA, believes it will be well worth the effort.
"SMBs choose computing systems based on whether they get the job done and are reliable and cost-effective. Sage, IBM and Linux have independently demonstrated that they possess these attributes - you just have to look at their market success to see that," he says.
"This collaboration is therefore great news for the channel. Sage's resellers will benefit from additional BMS software revenue opportunities. IBM's business partners will gain from the deals where IBM hardware and software add value to the Line 500 solution. And they can offer customers what is practically the perfect platform to run a Web-based SMB operation on."
The overall intention of this drive is to address the needs of SMBs across southern, East and West Africa. Initially, Sage and IBM will focus on SA and the burgeoning Kenyan and Nigerian markets.
"We've seen relatively strong adoption of Linux by SMBs in these countries ... however, it's been mainly for infrastructure applications like file and print sharing, and Web serving," adds Ellington.
"What we're saying here is that Linux is ready for business. By combining the IBM hardware, the Sage BMS software and the Linux operating system, we're able to offer SMBs open, robust and scalable way of managing their entire business - from finance to distribution to manufacturing and service."
The move also comes amid much activity in the mid-range BMS market. A number of international software vendors are currently refining their strategies or launching new products to target this customer segment.
"Competition is always good for business. However, the partnership that we have struck with IBM is unique and it takes us into a massive installed base of new users. None of the other ISVs that are launching right now can promote anything similar," says Ellington.
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