More affordable software is within reach of developing nations with the announcement that Sun Microsystems is making its Java Enterprise System (JES) available on a per-citizen pricing model for federal, state and local governments.
Already available on the Solaris Operating System (OS) for SPARC and x86-based systems, including Xeon and AMD Opteron-based systems, the latest release of JES extends platform support to Linux, with plans to extend support to Windows and HP-UX in future releases.
"With our new per-citizen pricing model, governments of developing nations can reallocate punitive software licensing fees to critical tasks such as healthcare and education. And the expanded platform support allows these nations to deliver network services to citizens and customers on the architecture of their choice," says Lodewyk de Beer, systems engineer at Sun Microsystems SA.
JES reshapes the way software is architected, acquired and managed for enterprises, including government entities. It enables organisations to replace costly, unpredictable middleware components with a software system available on a predictable release schedule and affordable subscription basis.
The unique licensing model available to government entities such as countries, provinces, states and cities in less developed and least developed countries and regions, is based on pricing ranging from $0.33 to $1.95 per citizen per year. It is based on two factors: the number of citizens in the respective government entity and the stage of development of the country as defined by the United Nations' Department of Economic and Social Affairs classification.
De Beer explains: "By calculating the price on these factors, world-class software can be made available to nations that can't afford to allocate large budgets to technology," he says.
This is the first time a company has offered governments around the world a complete network infrastructure software system that assists their populations in bridging the technological divide, along with a pricing model that allows for adjustment according to the level of the country's development.
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Since its inception in 1982, a singular vision - "The Network Is The Computer" - has propelled Sun Microsystems, Inc (Nasdaq: SUNW) to its position as a leading provider of industrial-strength hardware, software and services that make the Net work. Sun can be found in more than 100 countries and on the World Wide Web at http://www.sun.com.
Java Enterprise System
Serious software made simple, the Java Enterprise System seamlessly integrates award-winning and market-leading enterprise network applications and services at the heart of Web services. This complete standards-based software system is delivered as a single, pre-integrated entity on a predictable release cycle. Radically simplified customer pricing - $100 per employee per year (US list price) - delivers the peace of mind CIOs need to focus on what they do best: leverage IT to achieve business goals. The Java Enterprise System enterprise network services provide the core set of functionalities that businesses need to compete effectively in the marketplace: portal, communication and collaboration, network identity, application and Web, availability and security services. For more information on the Java Enterprise System, please visit: http://www.sun.com/software/javaenterprisesystem.
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