On Wed, 18 Oct 2006 23:28:29 -1000, Stephen Y Odo <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>We have a site license for Solaris which makes it almost free for as >many Sun servers as we want. And we can use the software to run our >administrative systems (Human Resources, Student Information System, >Financials, etc.). No restrictions on what we can use the software >for. Sun also gives us huge discounts on hardware. > >IBM gives us the standard 15% educational discount on software. And we >go out for bid on hardware and take our chances like every other >customer. IBM has programs for Higher Education ... like SzAU (or >something like that) and HESC (no longer available) but they require >that we ONLY use the software for instructional or research purposes. >If we run administrative workload on that software, we pay commercial >prices less the standard 15% educational discount. > IBM's actions here (not offering very cheap/"free" software licenses, free hardware, etc.) as compared to what other vendors are willing to do might be a result of the anti-trust cases brought against it decades ago (last one in 1969?). IBM was accused of maintaining it's near-monopoly position in mainframe hardware and software by bundling them together...buy the hardware, get the software for nothing. IBM was ordered by the courts to unbundled the software from the hardware and charge for it, thus helping start today's ISV business. So no more free software or below cost hardware. As far as I know (and I am no lawyer) the consent decrees that IBM agreed to to settle these antitrust cases are still in effect. It could be that these legal agreements are preventing IBM from offering such inducements.....just a thought. Have a good one. DJ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: GET IBM-MAIN INFO Search the archives at http://bama.ua.edu/archives/ibm-main.html
