IBM introduces servers for the next generation of e-business

ARMONK, N.Y. - 03 Oct 2000: -- IBM today announced IBM eServers*, a new generation of servers featuring mainframe-class reliability and scalability, broad support of open standards for the development of new applications, and capacity on demand for managing the unprecedented demands of e-business.

"Three years ago this week, IBM introduced e-business to the world," said Bill Zeitler, senior vice president and group executive, IBM Server Group. "For those of us who have been involved from the beginning helping customers transform themselves into e-businesses, it's now clear that we're entering a new phase. This new world is going to place entirely new, unprecedented demands on the underlying infrastructure that supports e-business. It will evolve over years and stretch the IT resources of most companies. That's why we're introducing the IBM eServer."

The IBM eServer is a product of Project Mach 1, a major cross-company initiative begun three years ago to harness the company's best technologies and practices to support the infrastructure for the next phase of e-business. From the consolidation of IBM server manufacturing and development, to the realignment of its sales force, to breakthroughs such as copper chips, Silicon-on-Insulator and Memory eXtension Technology, to partnerships with leading software vendors, to IBM's corporate-wide embrace of Linux -- every corner of IBM moved closer to today's launch of the IBM eServer.

With Project Mach 1, IBM researchers set out to determine what kind of computing model could handle serious e-business. They concluded that it required a new infrastructure for e-business in which computing power migrated from traditional, centralized IT systems into distributed high-speed networks so that usage of servers, applications and other IT resources became pervasive. This new e-business infrastructure consists of high-speed networks, seamlessly integrated applications and powerful servers engineered for specific types of workloads.

Driven by open standards, the Internet is rapidly transforming business models, markets and industries. By 2003, IBM estimates there will be 2.6 billion network access devices, including cell phones and PDAs. The rapid adoption of e-business will cause a 1,000-fold increase in the amount of data flowing over the Internet, a tidal wave of data-intensive, highly-integrated transactions, and unpredictable spikes in network traffic that threaten to overwhelm the current IT infrastructure.

To handle the demands of the new e-business infrastructure, every IBM eServer will come with a variety of offerings that provide the flexibility and speed to market large and small companies need to build, run and manage their e-business infrastructures affordably and effectively.

The new servers feature technology from IBM's high-end servers applied across the entire product line:

Mainframe-Class Reliability and Scalability

The entire IBM eServer line shares the best attributes of mainframe-class computing:

Open Standards Simplify Application Development

With open standards the driving force behind e-business, customers can't afford to be locked in to servers that offer limited choices in applications. The IBM eServer line offers the flexibility to deploy e-business applications across varied platforms.

Simplest Servers to Use, Manage, and Upgrade The new members of the IBM eServer family will begin shipping this quarter.

IBM is the number one server company in the world.

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The IBM e-business logo, xSeries, iSeries and zSeries are all trademarks of IBM Corporation. All others are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.
*The IBM eServer brand consists of the established IBM e-business logo with the following descriptive term "server" following it.