mainframe

IBM Reports Earnings Today: Here’s What to Expect

Arik Hesseldahl in News on July 18, 2011 at 5:50 am PT

One of the key bellwethers of the state of IT spending is IBM. It reports earnings today, after the close of trading. One big wild card this quarter, says Deutsche Bank analyst Chris Whitmore, concerns services revenue.

Seven Questions for Ric Telford, IBM’s VP of Cloud Services

Arik Hesseldahl in Enterprise on January 24, 2011 at 8:45 am PT

When you think about cloud computing, do you think of IBM? If not, you should. Here, Big Blue’s cloud chief talks about how its customers are putting cloud services to work, and hints at acquisitions.

Accel's Ping Li Compares the Cloud to the Mainframe

Arik Hesseldahl in Enterprise on January 18, 2011 at 7:00 am PT

If Cloud Computing winds up being the computing platform of the future, it will need a lot of the same pieces that mainframes did. And it’s in those layers where Li looks for opportunities.

Voices

EU Launches Formal Antitrust Probe Against IBM

Charles Forelle, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on July 26, 2010 at 11:03 am PT

Reanimating long-dormant scrutiny of International Business Machines Corp., European Union antitrust authorities said Monday they have opened formal investigations into Big Blue’s conduct in the market for powerful mainframe computers. One of the EU’s probes was spurred by complaints from two small technology companies that IBM improperly blocks customers from using the mainframe’s operating system without IBM’s own pricey hardware. The other probe is examining whether IBM is squelching third-party providers of spare mainframe parts.

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IBM Calculates New Mainframes Into Its Future Sales Growth

Spencer E. Ante, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on July 22, 2010 at 5:00 am PT

International Business Machines Corp. will roll out its new mainframe computers on Thursday, upgrading a key product line at a time when the technology giant is under pressure to show faster sales growth. The death of the mainframe has been predicted for years, as companies opted to handle their heavy computing needs with strings of cheaper servers rather than pay a million dollars for one massive box.

Voices

Mainframes Remain Lucrative Business for IBM

William M. Bulkeley and Keith J. Winstein, Reporters, The Wall Street Journal in News on October 9, 2009 at 11:44 am PT

A mainframe computer may seem as out-of-date as a typewriter in the age of Google and iPhones. But the half-century-old business is still crucial and lucrative enough to be drawing scrutiny from U.S. antitrust investigators. International Business Machines Corp. is now almost alone in the market for mainframes: high-end computers that run everything from Amtrak’s reservation system to benefits payments for the Social Security Administration.

Justice Department Looking to Punch IBM's Card?

John Paczkowski in News on October 8, 2009 at 4:43 am PT

It has been nearly eight years since the U.S. Department of Justice agreed to dissolve its 1956 consent decree with IBM, lifting restrictions that had prevented the company from becoming a monopoly in the market for punch card tabulating machines. But perhaps those restrictions were better left in place. Because on Thursday, the DOJ opened a new investigation into IBM’s business practices, seeking to determine if the company has abused its monopoly position in the mainframe market.

Justice Department Looking to Punch IBM’s Card?

John Paczkowski in News on October 8, 2009 at 4:43 am PT

It has been nearly eight years since the U.S. Department of Justice agreed to dissolve its 1956 consent decree with IBM, lifting restrictions that had prevented the company from becoming a monopoly in the market for punch card tabulating machines. But perhaps those restrictions were better left in place. Because on Thursday, the DOJ opened a new investigation into IBM’s business practices, seeking to determine if the company has abused its monopoly position in the mainframe market.

Oracle CEO to IBM, HP: Don't Get Your Hopes Up. We're Keeping Sun's Hardware.

John Paczkowski in News on May 8, 2009 at 4:55 am PT

Larry Ellison’s got some news for skeptics predicting Oracle will dump the Sun Microsystems hardware business when its $7.4 billion acquisition of the company closes: It’s not gonna happen. In an interview with Reuters subsequently filed with the SEC, the Oracle CEO said he plans to maintain that part of Sun’s business.