Briefs: December 13, 2004

EXPANDING PRODUCT LINES KEY TO DELL GROWTH STRATEGY

Speaking at the annual Raymond James IT Supply Chain Conference in New York, Schneider also struck a conciliatory note toward solution providers. "We've always said we don't need to own everything," he said. "We want to own the customer relationship, but for the services we offer, we work with lots of partners."

A linchpin of Dell's strategy is to limit Hewlett-Packard's revenue stream from printers, even if it means that Dell would lose money on printer sales, Schneider said. "The goal for us is not to make income in this area. It's a longer-term opportunity for us," he said. "We need to get a much bigger base of products out there to drive consumables."

Dell is on track to generate $1 billion in printer and imaging revenue this year, Schneider said. The bulk of those sales are based on printers manufactured by Lexmark International.

Schneider added that he expects Dell to become more successful in the enterprise space because of new blade servers and a refresh to the Clariion midrange storage products that Dell resells from EMC. "We were disappointed in enterprise growth, but following some product transitions we expect that segment to grow faster," he said.

SYMANTEC TO GROW IPS WITH PLATFORM LOGIC BUY
Security powerhouse Symantec has inked an agreement to buy intrusion-prevention software vendor Platform Logic for an undisclosed amount.

The deal, confirmed Friday by Symantec, will add Platform Logic's AppFire software to the host IPS technology in Symantec's antivirus arsenal, and give the vendor yet another method for blocking unknown, or zero-day, exploits.

The AppFire technology also should enable Symantec to help customers detect Trojan horse programs and spyware.

Symantec declined to share details about the Platform Logic deal.

Platform Logic, which has a modest-sized channel program of its own, did not respond to requests for comment. The company's AppFire Suite 3.0 was released in March.

PALMSOURCE TO DEVELOP LINUX VERSION OF PALM OS
Palm OS developer PalmSource said it will create a Linux version of the Palm OS. The company announced it is acquiring China MobileSoft Limited (CMS), which has been developing a version of the Linux operating system for mobile devices. In a statement, PalmSource said the acquisition indicates the direction in which it is moving. PalmSource said in the statement that it plans to implement Palm OS on top of Linux. It said it will continue to offer two versions of the Palm OS-version 5.x, known as Garnet, and version 6.x, known as Cobalt. PalmSource provided no timetable for the release of the Linux version of the Palm OS. Besides developing a version of Linux for mobile devices, CMS also has developed a number of applications for mobile phones and smartphones, according to PalmSource.

The agreement calls for PalmSource to issue about 1.57 million shares of its common stock to fund the transaction. The company expects the transaction to close by Feb. 28.

CYBERGUARD LAUNCHES SPYWARE PROTECTION
Security vendor CyberGuard has upgraded its flagship device to help customers prevent adware, a form of spyware that aids in the gathering of information about users without their knowledge.

The upgrade to the company's Webwasher Content Management Suiteversion 5.1also includes a filter against mobile code attacks and boasts new reporting capabilities to help pinpoint infected machines on a company network. It is available to channel partners immediately.

The new adware protection takes a two-pronged approach, said Horst Joepen, CyberGuard CEO. First, the software proactively strips content and code that enables adware to be downloaded. Second, it disrupts adware already inside the network from sending or receiving information.

CISCO TAKING 'ARCHITECTURAL APPROACH' TO SOLUTIONS
Cisco Systems is banking on the breadth of its technology portfolio and the full solutions it enables to help it maintain growth over the next few years.

During the company's Worldwide Analyst Conference 2004 last week, Cisco President and CEO John Chambers said the company plans to focus on an "architectural approach" that builds more intelligence into the network and helps customers integrate multiple technologies to change the way they do business.

To help customers along that path, Cisco is rolling out Network Transformation Services. The new services, which will be delivered in conjunction with Cisco's channel partners, will enable "hyper-integration" and show customers the benefits of intelligent networking, said Wim Elfrink, senior vice president of worldwide customer advocacy at Cisco.

"We're working closely with [the channel group] to embed our intellectual property into future programs," Elfrink said.