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SGI, Oracle in bundling deal

Oracle enterprise software will soon be bundled with selected Silicon Graphics servers, the companies say.

2 min read
Oracle enterprise software will soon be bundled with selected Silicon Graphics (SGI) servers, the companies announced today.

SGI is hoping that a high-profile partnership with established database-maker Oracle may give a boost to its lagging server sales. Under the new alliance, SGI will sell and support Oracle's information management software with its Origin 200 server.

At the time it introduced the Origin 200 in early 1997, SGI said it wanted to expand into the commercial marketplace. The company is now effecting that strategy through a partnership with Oracle, said Dataquest server analyst Jerry Sheridan.

"They had the good technology, they just didn't have the other necessary ingredients," Sheridan said. "They didn't have the channels set up, the VARs [Value Added Resellers], and distributors, and they didn't have the applications."

SGI is also hoping that offering a "one-stop-shopping" experience where customers can obtain a complete enterprise solution and support from a single vendor will help to boost corporate sales of servers. "You have to go out and seek and develop those alliances in order to be a viable participant" in the enterprise (or high-end corporate) market, Sheridan said.

The Origin 200 is SGI's entry-level Web server, featuring MIPS R10000 microprocessors for workgroups. The servers are used for Web authoring, e-commerce, and database applications.

The Origin 200 with Oracle enterprise solution for five users will be available on March 1, from SGI and its distributors.

"It's like if you're going to sell cookbooks," Sheridan noted. "You need to align yourself with Betty Crocker, or you'll just have a nice cover."