IBM chooses Hadoop to analyze big data

IBM on Wednesday is set to announce a new portfolio of solutions and services to help enterprises analyze large volumes of data. IBM InfoSphere BigInsights is based on Apache Hadoop, an open-source technology designed for analysis of big volumes of data.

IBM InfoSphere BigInsights is made up of a package of Hadoop software and services, BigSheets, a beta product designed to help business professionals extract, annotate, and visually uncover insights from vast amounts of information quickly and easily through a Web browser, and industry-specific frameworks to help clients get started.

IBM has been aggressive in consuming and repackaging open-source projects such as the Apache Web server and Hadoop to make them part of the core of their offerings. And, really, IBM has no choice but to remain on the cutting edge, and Hadoop retains a great deal of buzz related to large-scale data processing.

Mike Olson, CEO of Cloudera, the leading provider of support and services for Hadoop, told me he was thrilled that IBM has joined the global Hadoop community and expected IBM's contributions to accelerate the movement.

Considering the fact that Big Blue already owns a number of other software products that provide similar functionality (albeit with much higher price tags) it's a study in hedging your bets to best address how a user base is adopting new products and trends.

That said, few companies have the resources or ability to sell multiple products, let alone multiple competing product lines. IBM's ability to manipulate both their technology development and their efforts to match market direction changes remains an amazing competitive strength.