IBM announced today the opening of the first center in New York City to help the financial services industry deploy Linux solutions. The Linux center, which will be based in IBM’s landmark building at 590 Madison Avenue, will include hardware, software and services from IBM as well as various participating companies, designed to help financial services customers test and implement Linux applications. The center represents an initial investment of more than $1 milllion from IBM.
“IBM is viewed as a leader in Linux and open solutions, and it is a natural evolution of our long standing partnership for J.D. Edwards to participate in IBM’s Linux Center of Competence,” said Les Wyatt, senior vice president and chief marketing officer, J.D. Edwards. “J.D. Edwards collaborative CRM solution, working with IBM hardware and software in the Linux Center of Competence, will allow us to address the flexibility and scalability requirements of financial services customers.”
IBM’s Linux Center of Competence (Linux CoC) will provide the financial sector with a full range of support for Linux, including access to IBM hardware, software and services to evaluate and test key applications on Linux, secure technical advice, participate in Linux training courses and educational programs, attend community events, as well as work in a hands-on environment with key ISVs, Linux distributors and Business Partners.
“In the face of a challenging economy, IBM customers in the financial sector are moving to Linux because of its low cost, powerful security, stability and flexibility,” said Steve Solazzo, General Manager, Linux at IBM. “But, most importantly, they are moving to Linux because it enables their deployment of applications that give them competitive advantage. The breadth of customers, Business Partners, ISVs, and vendors that are participating with IBM in the Linux Center of Competence is a clear indicator that there is demand on Wall Street for complete Linux solutions.”
At the center, financial services customers will have an opportunity to test several types of Linux solutions including:
IBM’s entire eServer product line including, Intel-based xSeries systems, powerful and inexpensive Linux clusters that transform the processing of quantitative applications to distributed applications in brokerage or branch locations, and Linux mainframes to take advantage of the cost savings associated with server consolidation. Industry leading integration software that streamlines business processes, making it easier and less expensive to share information across a variety of applications throughout a corporation and its remote locations.
SunGard, JD Edwards,VERITAS Software, and Sybase are among the premier firms whose technologies will be available in the IBM Linux Center. In addition to the IBM Learning Services courses available, these Business Partners and participating companies will provide seminars and hands-on training sessions for customers using their Linux applications.
“As part of the drive to help clients reduce Total Cost of Ownership, IBM and SunGard are exploring Linux as part of a Server and Application consolidation plan that will help SunGard and IBM customers integrate their application environments to speed processing of financial transactions,” said Mack Gill, Director, Alliance Programs.