PLATINUM Unveils Microsoft Repository Running
on Non-Microsoft Platforms and Databases
ACTION ITEMS
At the Data Warehouse Institute Conference, PLATINUM technology has delivered Microsoft Repository to heterogeneous environments, representing a significant milestone in the PLATINUM/Microsoft partnership and an inaugural achievement in the industry. Microsoft Repository is now generally available from PLATINUM on Windows NT for Oracle, Sybase, and DB2 and on Solaris for Oracle and Sybase. The solution running on HP/UX and IBM AIX for Oracle and Sybase is in Beta availability. PLATINUM's porting of Microsoft Repository, based on the Open Information Model (OIM), will enable customers to leverage this industry standard technology enterprisewide and speed application development and ERP deployment efforts.
To fully support the OIM, a universal metadata specification developed by Microsoft, PLATINUM, and over 30 industry vendors, PLATINUM also announced its Repository Partner Program. Numerous leading independent software vendors (ISVs), including Informix, Popkin, and others are supporting PLATINUM's partner program. These ISVs have committed to licensing Microsoft Repository and utilizing it in their data warehousing and application development solutions, allowing customers who are using tools from multiple vendors to share metadata among disparate sources and to leverage their existing investments.
"PLATINUM's enterprise repository expertise, joint Repository development, and its Repository Partner Program have immensely advanced the Meta Data Coalition's efforts to promote the OIM as the standard meta data specification for data warehousing," said Steve Murchie data warehouse product manager at Microsoft. "PLATINUM's contributions have also given leading ISVs an effective means to replace their proprietary metadata technologies with a common model, ultimately benefiting their customers by providing them with a means to link disparate metadata sources and maximize their existing investments in industry warehouse and development tools."
"As a leader in enterprise warehouse solutions, Informix supports the OIM and PLATINUM's Repository Partner Program. We are actively working with PLATINUM to port the repository so that Microsoft Repository customers can host repository data on Informix Dynamic Server," said Bob Walters, vice president, business development for Informix's Data Warehousing Division. "We believe that an industry specification for metadata will help open up enterprise applications and development tools, ultimately benefiting customers by providing them a bridge between islands of metadata located throughout their organization. The increased interoperability of tools and applications will make our Decision Frontier Solution Suite development environment even more flexible and powerful."
"These new Microsoft Repository ports extend customers' capabilities to leverage and combine metadata in heterogeneous environments for rapid deployment of ERP systems and critical enterprise applications," said Mikael Wipperfeld, vice president of data warehouse marketing for PLATINUM. "For the first time, IT project leaders and CIOs can derive true business advantage from enterprise metadata, with a significant decrease in financial and time investments traditionally required for successful global data warehouse and ERP system implementations."
About the PLATINUM Repository Partner Program
The Microsoft Repository is now available from PLATINUM on HP-UX, Sun Solaris, IBM AIX, and NT platforms and Oracle 8, Sybase 11.5, and DB/2 UDB databases. PLATINUM's Repository Partner Program provides participating vendors with documentation, training, and technical support to successfully embed Microsoft Repository in their data warehousing and application development tools. For further information or to enroll, please visit http://www.platinum.com/partners/repository.
PLATINUM's Repository Strategy
PLATINUM Repository exponentially increases organizations' success with warehouse implementation and application development. By providing a foundation for acquiring, maintaining, and exploiting metadata throughout the enterprise, PLATINUM Repository helps organizations reduce application development and maintenance costs and derive more value from existing information assets. PLATINUM has a 10-year proven track record in enterprise repository with more than 500 implementations worldwide. PLATINUM's leadership in metadata management is further underscored by the company's strategic, long-term repository development partnership with Microsoft.
PLATINUM is the only repository vendor working to bring together a variety of heterogeneous platforms such as Microsoft Windows 95/98/NT, UNIX, and IBM S/390 to leverage the technologies of COM and CORBA. PLATINUM supports the OIM with the Microsoft Repository and is combining it with other repository initiatives such as the OMG's MOF specification. This approach provides customers with the broadest support of current standards and tools.
About PLATINUM technology International, inc.
PLATINUM technology International, inc., headquartered in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois, had 1998 revenues of $968 million. PLATINUM provides software and services that help IT organizations manage and improve the IT infrastructure. Solutions include application lifecycle, database and systems management, data warehousing, Internet commerce, and Year 2000 reengineering. For information visit http://www.platinum.com.