UnitedLinux Signs IBM and AMD as First Technology Partners

January 14, 2003


IBM (NYSE:IBM) and AMD (NYSE:AMD) have joined UnitedLinux as Technology Partners, UnitedLinux announced today.

WAKEFIELD, Mass.

IBM (NYSE:IBM) and AMD (NYSE:AMD) have joined UnitedLinux as Technology Partners, UnitedLinux announced today. UnitedLinux is the result of an industry initiative to streamline Linux development and certification around a global, uniform distribution of Linux targeted at the business user. The role of Technology Partner includes, among other benefits, participation in the UnitedLinux Technical Advisory Board and its committees, pre-release access to UnitedLinux deliverables, the right to propose enhancements for consideration by the UnitedLinux Technical Steering Committee, and joint marketing activities. IBM and AMD are the first companies to engage with UnitedLinux at the Technology Partner level.

"UnitedLinux welcomes IBM and AMD as our inaugural Technology Partners. In joining forces with Linux industry leaders, we are making great strides toward our goal of the widespread proliferation of Linux in the enterprise," said Paula Hunter, general manager of UnitedLinux. "UnitedLinux is proud to announce this major milestone, coming on the heels of our successful launch of UnitedLinux Version 1.0, and we look forward to the results of this world-class collaboration."

Founding companies of UnitedLinux are Linux industry leaders Conectiva S.A., The SCO Group (NASDAQ:SCOX), SUSE Linux AG, and Turbolinux, Inc. UnitedLinux Version 1.0, released in November, is the engine that powers products sold by the four companies, each with its own value-add features, services and pricing.

"Fostering Linux collaboration accelerates value to customers," said Karen Smith, vice president, Linux strategy, IBM. "Such collaboration with UnitedLinux has already yielded impressive solution offerings spanning IBM's complete eServer product line, enabled with key middleware, and supported worldwide through IBM Global Services."

"AMD and UnitedLinux share a common goal to provide scalable, reliable and affordable Linux-based solutions for the enterprise," said Rich Heye, vice president, platform engineering and infrastructure, Computation Products Group, AMD. "Companies choosing systems based on the upcoming AMD Opteron processors will have an x86-based option for capturing the advantages of 64-bit UnitedLinux products. Together, AMD and UnitedLinux plan to enable rapid and efficient ports of 32- and 64-bit Linux-based applications and systems."

Built on top of a solid and tested foundation, UnitedLinux 1.0 is an enterprise-class operating system with exceptional stability, scalability and reliability, and its high level of quality has been previously available only in expensive proprietary operating systems. UnitedLinux Version 1.0 incorporates a wide range of features that enhance its usefulness for enterprise environments. Details are contained in a UnitedLinux white paper at www.unitedlinux.com.

Distributed virtually everywhere in the world and supported by leading global ISVs and IHVs, UnitedLinux Version 1.0 is initially available in English, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, German, French and Hungarian. UnitedLinux Version 1.0 has local language and local time zone support for customers around the world, with access to a channel of more than 16,000 resellers and a global pre- and post-sales support team.

Products powered by UnitedLinux are being offered by the four founding companies. Details are available on request from Conectiva S. A. - unitedlinux@conectiva.com; The SCO Group - unitedlinux@sco.com; SUSE Linux AG - unitedlinux@suse.com; Turbolinux, Inc. - unitedlinux@turbolinux.com.


About UnitedLinux

UnitedLinux is a partnership of industry-leading Linux companies combining their intellectual property, geographic mind share, sales, support and marketing expertise to produce a uniform distribution of Linux designed for business. UnitedLinux applies the collaborative development model of open source to the business model to enable a one-stop shop for developers, partners and customers to install, support and maintain quality business solutions based on Linux anywhere in the world. UnitedLinux is actively recruiting membership for both industry software developers and those who provide Linux as an integral part of their business solutions. For more information, visit http://www.unitedlinux.com or call UnitedLinux at +1-781-876-8989.

For additional information:
Margot Rodger
UnitedLinux
781-876-6299
mrodger@virtualmgmt.com

About Novell
Novell, Inc. is a leading provider of information solutions that deliver secure identity management (Novell® Nsure™), Web application development (Novell exteNd™) and cross-platform networking services (Novell Nterprise™), all supported by strategic consulting and professional services (Novell NgageSM). Active in the open source community with its Ximian and SUSE Linux brands, Novell is firmly committed to open source and offers comprehensive Linux products and services for the enterprise, from the desktop to the server. Novell's vision of one Net - a world without information boundaries - helps customers realize the value of their information securely and economically. For more information, call Novell's Customer Response Center at (888) 321-4CRC (4272) or visit http://www.novell.com. Press should visit http://www.novell.com/pressroom.

Novell is a registered trademarks; Nsure, exteNd and Nteprise are trademarks; and Ngage is a service mark of Novell, Inc. in the United States and other countries. SUSE is a registered trademark of SUSE Linux AG. * All third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.