Linux Migration Pact
The deal expands an existing relationship and poses a competitive threat to another BEA partner, Sun Microsystems. Sun derives much of its revenue from its Unix-based Solaris operating system and related servers, solution providers said.
San Jose, Calif.-based BEA also is expected this week to reveal a deal with Red Hat to optimize BEA's WebLogic software for Red Hat Linux, said Rick Jackson, vice president of product and solutions marketing at BEA.
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BEA and HP have bolstered their alliance in the past two years
>> June 2002: HP and BEA agree to bundle BEA's WebLogic middleware line with all of HP's operating systems.
>> September 2002: HP moves to offer a free, six-month trial version of BEA WebLogic Server on its Linux, Tru64 Unix, OpenVMS and NonStop Kernel OSes.
>> September 2002: BEA makes HP its preferred consulting services provider for BEA WebLogic on HP servers, and HP Services forms a dedicated practice around WebLogic.
>> May 2003: HP extends support for BEA WebLogic to AlphaServer systems running OpenVMS and ProLiant servers running Linux.
>> August 2003: BEA and HP unveil joint solutions comprised
of software, hardware and services to migrate customers to Linux from Unix.
The company will contribute its WebLogic Platform 8.1,a combination of Java application server, integration server, portal server and visual development tool, and its WebLogic JRockit Java virtual machine as part of the new HP deal. HP, Palo Alto, Calif., will provide Xeon-based ProLiant servers, Itanium 2-based Integrity servers, and consulting, support and education from HP Services.
BEA's Jackson said customer interest in more economical IT purchasing options is driving BEA's Linux strategy, not an explicit desire to move customers off Unix.
However, solution providers said HP and BEA's joint Linux effort endangers the success of companies that derive revenue from hardware running Unix, such as Sun.
"The easiest target for someone trying to sell Linux is Sun's [customer base]," said Joe Lindsay, CTO and business development manager at Costa Mesa, Calif.-based eBuilt.
Lindsay said the strength of Sun's Solaris has always been its support for open standards and overall reliability. Now, "all the qualities Sun has stood for are embodied in Linux," Lindsay said.
Sun has invested significantly in Linux in the past 18 months, but it may be too little, too late, he added.
Until two years ago, BEA WebLogic was deployed primarily on Solaris running on Sun servers. But in 2001, when Sun began to offer its Java application server free with Solaris, BEA expanded its relationship with HP, which has since dropped its own line of Java software.
Jennie Grimes, director of HP Services' worldwide enterprise integration practice, said HP is developing a major practice around WebLogic, as BEA is one of only two HP Services preferred partners for integration software. Microsoft is the other, she said.
BEA is returning the favor, solution providers said. HP is the only hardware partner in which BEA is investing major resources, said Adam Farrell, business development director at solution provider Semaphore Partners, San Francisco. BEA benefits from HP Services because "HP can sell outsourcing deals like EDS or IBM [Global Services] can."
Sun isn't the only company that stands to lose from the deepening partnership between BEA and HP. EBuilt's Lindsay said the union competes with solution providers.
However, Sam Jankovich, president of Enterpulse, a solution provider in Atlanta, said the BEA-HP relationship could spell opportunity for solution providers, since they can resell a combined package of HP hardware and BEA software to customers.
"The reseller model works great when you have a solution where you can sell and bundle everything turnkey," Jankovich said.