Citrix CEO Mark Templeton Lays Out Product Strategy

At Citrix Systems' annual iForum user conference in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., Senior Writer Paula Rooney met with Citrix President and CEO Mark Templeton to discuss various company initiatives, future plans and competitive issues.

CRN: What is the significance of increasing product integration efforts with IBM, SAP and Hewlett-Packard?

Templeton: We've been working with all of them for some time--years and years--on a scattering of transactions, but there's no alliance. It lends huge credibility to Citrix's [enterprise goals] and getting customers to see our more strategic view, and they're not the only ones.

CRN: Citrix is attempting to reinvent itself from a terminal services company into one that offers a fully integrated suite of access infrastructure products. When will we begin to see that integration?

Templeton: First, we have the [bundled suite]. Then, the Citrix Management Interface [in the next MetaFrame Suite code-named Hudson] is the first example of this integration. The products already interoperate really well, but we'll cut down the number of management consoles to one and add other capabilities in the future.

CRN: Such as?

Templeton: Automated provisioning for new users [in a corporate network]. More display-type technologies.

CRN: Your ISV partner Softricity has an application virtualization technology that lets customers run multiple iterations of applications on the same server farm. Is Citrix considering buying this technology from Softricity or buying Softricity itself?

Templeton: I won't comment [on the latter part]. We like Softricity and the idea of on-demand installation of an application in a server environment. We like the sandboxing. ... Softricity is a partner, and we have a similar partner in Asia. This type of technology has been around--incremental on-demand installation [of applications]. We generally like the space but have no plans other than to partner.

CRN: Citrix pitches itself as a provider of secure-access infrastructure products. The thin-client approach surely can slow down the spread of viruses and worms across a corporation. How has the Windows security crisis impacted your business?

Templeton: It sensitized customers to just how dangerous the last mile is. Did it benefit us? There are some opportunities [with MetaFrame] for customers to insulate themselves, but [our technology is not going to eliminate] the problem.

CRN: How do you assess the state of computer security these days?

Templeton: Right now, security is a glue-on thing. It's like guns in the Wild West before the law, sheriff and jails. We're in a transitional state, but we'll get through it and we'll eventually have product and systemic-like security.

CRN: How bad is this problem for Microsoft?

Templeton: It's ironic, but what [the hackers] are doing is helping Microsoft harden the environment in a way that no other operating system will be hardened.

CRN: When do you think we'll get back to normal--when we didn't have to worry about viruses?

Templeton: I'd say between two and five years. We'll start to see some significant capabilities in a couple of years. This is a transient kind of thing.

CRN: Some observers say Microsoft's .Net and Citrix's MetaFrame suite take different approaches to solving the same problem--application integration. What do you think of that?

Templeton: They're a mile apart. .Net is about dealing with the application infrastructure and the user-scenario side. We're about access infrastructure products.

CRN: How will MetaFrame run .Net applications and other XML Web services?

Templeton: .Net is like the Internet remote procedure call (RPC). Microsoft owns the core IP around RPC. RPC has been around for a long time, but it didn't work because the LAN and servers weren't robust enough. I don't think we know how .Net services will run on MetaFrame.

CRN: Where is Citrix today?

Templeton: People have to get beyond thinking about the remote computing thing. You want to think about MetaFrame as an access infrastructure that gives wholesale access to applications--anytime, anywhere. That's where we fit.

CRN: Citrix's stated goal is to hit $1 billion in revenue. The company is at $530 million annually now. When will you reach the billion-dollar milestone?

Templeton: We have an internal plan. But we can't say when.

CRN: We've heard a bit about Microsoft's next-generation terminal services, code-named Bearpaw. We hear it will have application publishing. Won't that strike at the heart of MetaFrame Presentation Server's core value?

Templeton: The terminal services function is one component that's part of the access infrastructure. Microsoft has always made its terminal services better [with each release of the Windows server]. They take a step; then we'll take two steps.

CRN: ISVs have been gobbled up or crushed by Microsoft before. Your software has significant value in the enterprise space. Do you trust Microsoft [will remain an ally]?

Templeton: Yes, I trust Microsoft. Obviously, we have a good relationship with them. We were named Microsoft's ISV of the year. Nobody thinks about the economics; it's a free deal for them. The reason the partnership works so well is that Microsoft is leveraging every deal we spend R&D on to win [because MetaFrame customers must license the terminal services in the Windows server to run Citrix]. And that's the most powerful reason to drive the partnership. But it's a business partnership. You're always thinking tactically, strategically.

CRN: Given your new emphasis on access infrastructure, do you see more applicability of MetaFrame to the SMB market? Or do you think SMBs will be satisfied with using the terminal services available to them in Windows?

Templeton: We're interested in companies with 500 desktops [or more]. No one has decoded the sales economics or has a model to reach businesses [with five to 100 desktops with Citrix's technology].