Wary Sun Weighs Joining Web Services Group

The source, who requested anonymity, said e-mails showing that Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates approved WS-I plans only because Sun was not a founding member,in addition to evidence that both Microsoft and IBM originally voted against Sun's joining the board when the WS-I was founded,indicate that the group likely was conceived to purposefully exclude Sun.

Sun fears that "Microsoft is using this to stick it to us" and keep Sun out of the loop, said the source.

In an e-mail message from Gates, introduced during testimony by Microsoft Senior Vice President Jim Allchin at the antitrust trial in early May, Gates indicated that Microsoft would move forward with WS-I, which was code-named "foo," only if Sun was not involved in the launch.

"I can live with this if we have the positioning clearly in our favor. In particular, Sun not being one of the movers/announcers/founding members," Gates wrote.

However, Simon Phipps, chief technology evangelist for Sun, said Sun is maintaining a "watch and see" attitude about joining WS-I, and is considering IBM's recent outreach encouraging the board to give Sun a seat on the WS-I board cautiously, given the testimony.

"We're going to treat IBM's invitation in good faith and see whether there's an opportunity for Sun to join WS-I," Phipps said.

The WS-I was founded in February 2002 by a group of vendors led by Microsoft and IBM to promote Web services in the industry by developing best practices, testing and sample applications around "basic" Web standards such as XML, SOAP, UDDI and WSDL.

Sun has yet to join the organization, which includes a who's who of technology leaders such as Oracle, Hewlett-Packard, BEA Systems, SAP, Intel and Cisco Systems. Some 100 other companies have also signed on including AT&T, Vitria, Proctor and Gamble, Parasoft, SilverStream Software and Tibco Software.

The WS-I has set up three main working groups and expects to release guidelines and documentation by the fall.

David Chao, vice president of sales and marketing for Navidec, a Greenwood Village, Colo.-based solution provider, said it is "imperative" that Sun joins the WS-I and any other effort to promote Web services compatibility.

"For an operator like us that relies on open standards, it's like not going to your own wedding," Chao said. "Anyone that thinks that all they're ever going to buy is Sun hardware running Sun ONE [software running a Unix box on their desk,that's just not reality. The reality is there is no heterogeneous [IT environment."