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Supriya Venkat
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Chris Vander Rhodes
Object Management Group
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THE OPEN GROUP™ AND THE OMG™ PROVIDE INTEROPERABILITY GUARANTEE FOR CORBA® BRANDED MIDDLEWARE
Fujitsu Announced as First Open Brand for CORBA Partner after Meeting all Certification Requirements
MICO Version 2.2.7 Hosted by ThinkOne and OmniORB2 Developed by AT&T Laboratories Cambridge Also Complete Brand Requirements
MENLO PARK, Calif. (June 7, 1999) – The Open Group, a leading consortium dedicated to enterprise integration, today announced its long-time member Fujitsu Limited, has passed all certification requirements to become the first Open Brand for CORBA® (Common Object Request Broker Architecture) partner. By achieving compliance with the CORBA brand, Fujitsu can guarantee that any of its software applications linked with CORBA Object Request Brokers (ORBs) will be interoperable with all other CORBA branded middleware regardless of the vendor or programming language. CORBA-branded middleware brings the benefits of middleware interoperability to corporate IT/IS managers, enabling new applications to be integrated into the enterprise while maintaining interoperability with legacy applications.
"While one of the overriding reasons users choose CORBA is to insure interoperability is achieved, it has been difficult to insure vendors are telling the truth when it comes to standards support," said Karen D. Boucher, executive vice president, The Standish Group. "The Open Group has positioned themselves as the watch dogs of the CORBA marketplace. Through this branding program users can be assured they are choosing products that will work together."
"As a charter member of The Open Group, Fujitsu has long been a supporter of standards-based products that ensure a level of performance and interoperability," said Hirokazu Narita, General Manager, Standardization, Strategy and Planning Group, Fujitsu Limited. "We are proud to be among the first to earn the title of Open Brand for CORBA partner to demonstrate to our customers that our middleware solutions are guaranteed to interoperate with all CORBA branded middleware and CORBA objects."
In addition to Fujitsu, the MICO 2.2.7 Open Source ORB, hosted by ThinkOne, a joint venture of France Telecom (NYSE: FTE) and Deutsche Telekom (NYSE: DT), and the omniORB2 developed by AT&T Laboratories Cambridge have earned the Open Brand for CORBA.
MAJOR CUSTOMERS TO USE THE OPEN BRAND FOR CORBA AS EVALUATION CRITERIA
"AT&T's Operations Technology Center has selected CORBA as the primary vehicle for implementing mission critical operations support systems," said Alberto Avritzer, district manager, Advanced Architectures Development District, Network Computing Service, AT&T. "Once the branding program is established, our intention is to use the Open Brand for CORBA as one of the key evaluation criteria for middleware product selection."
"We are pleased to work with The Open Group to certify CORBA branded ORBs and give end users the assurance that Open Brand for CORBA products are guaranteed to conform to specifications and offer complete out-of-the-box interoperability. Besides offering peace of mind, the brand offers a real value to buyers who require products that conform to OMG specifications," said Dr. Richard Soley, the Object Management Group's Chairman and CEO.
"The Open Group is dedicated to enable organizations to integrate legacy applications with new software and middleware within the enterprise," said Allen Brown, COO and acting president of The Open Group. "We are pleased to be working with the OMG and CORBA branded partners like Fujitsu to take the next steps towards complete interoperability as defined by our vision of IT DialTone™."
WHAT IS CORBA?
The Object Management Group (OMG™) developed the CORBA architecture as an open, vendor-neutral specification for interoperability, to link disparate object-oriented applications. Simply stated, CORBA allows developers and users to gain access to information transparently, without having to know what software or hardware platform it resides on or where it is located on an enterprise’s network. The communications heart of object-oriented systems, CORBA brings true interoperability to today's computing environment.
Using a test suite developed by ApTest to evaluate compliance of participating vendors, The Open Group – in cooperation with the OMG – provides an ongoing interoperability guarantee for CORBA objects by testing, and branding activities. This procedure ensures that all vendors’ solutions in compliance with the standard will interoperate with the architectures of all other compliant middleware applications. By earning the Open Brand for CORBA, Fujitsu has proven that its CORBA architecture meets the specifications for interoperability and also guarantees that its solutions will continue to meet those specifications.
"ApTest recognizes the need to have measurable specification standards to ensure interoperability for any standard," said Andy Silverman, President of ApTest. "Our test suite demonstrates our commitment to ensuring interoperability by providing a tool that delivers an independent measurement of compliance with the CORBA standard. We are pleased to continue our relationship with The Open Group to help enable integration across the enterprise."
ABOUT THE OMG
With the support of its membership of software vendors, software developers and end users, OMG’s CORBA is "The Middleware That’s Everywhere™." Since 1989, OMG has been "Setting The Standards For Distributed Computing™" through its mission to promote the theory and practice of object technology for the development of distributed computing systems. The goal is to provide a common architectural framework for object oriented applications based on widely available interface specifications. OMG is headquartered in Framingham, MA, USA and has international marketing offices in Australia, Bahrain, Brazil, Germany, India, Italy, Japan and the UK, along with a healthcare representative in Pelham, AL, USA and a government representative in Washington, DC., USA. Additionally, OMG is a sponsor of the COMDEX Enterprise series of Trade Shows and Conferences.
For information on joining OMG or additional information, please contact OMG headquarters by phone at +1-508-820 4300, by fax at +1-508-820 4303, or by email at info@omg.org. OMG provides current information and services for Distributed Object Computing through The Information Brokerage® on the World Wide Web at: www.omg.org.
ABOUT APTEST
Applied Testing and Technology (ApTest) specializes in automated testing for application software, Web sites, middleware, Operating Systems, and compilers. ApTest offerings include products and services to facilitate the rapid deployment of test automation programs: test tools and frameworks, test requirements analysis, test process definition, test planning, and outsourced test suite development. ApTest has offices in the United States and Europe, with headquarters at 59 North Santa Cruz Avenue, Los Gatos, Calif. 95030; telephone: (408) 399-1930. For additional information about ApTest, visit the company's Web site at http://www.aptest.com.
ABOUT THE OPEN GROUP
The Open Group is committed to delivering greater business efficiency by bringing together buyers and suppliers of information systems to lower the cost and risks associated with integrating new technology across the enterprise. The Open Group ensures that multi-vendor information technology matches the demands and needs of customers. This is achieved through the development and deployment of frameworks, polices, best practices and standards in pursuit of the group’s IT DialTone vision --- the concept of making all technology as open and accessible as using a telephone.
By leveraging the expertise of its sponsors – Compaq (NSYE: CPQ), Fujitsu, HP (NYSE: HWP), Hitachi (TSE:6501), IBM (NYSE: IBM), NCR (NYSE: NCR), Siemens, Sun (NASDAQ: SUNW) - and other members comprising leading software companies, Fortune 500 users and government departments, The Open Group is well on its way to achieving the DialTone vision. Embracing the maxim: "we can do so much more together than alone", The Open Group is helping its members to stay ahead in the race to use technology to gain competitive advantage.
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Note to editors: IT DialTone and The Open Group are trademarks of The Open Group in the US and other countries. CORBA® is a registered trademark of the Object Management Group. OMG™, Object Management Group™, ORB™, Object Request Broker™, IIOP™, OMG Interface Definition Language (IDL) ™, and UML™ are trademarks of the Object Management Group. All other products or company names mentioned are used for identification purposes only, and may be trademarks of their respective owners.