Novell Renegotiates Unix Technologies License with Sun
Sun Takes New License for Novell's NetWare UNIX Client Technology
SUMMIT, N.J. -- March 17, 1994 -- Novell, Inc. (NOVL) announced today that Sun Microsystems Inc. has purchased for $82.5 million a fully paid license for UNIX System technology through Release 4.0, used in the Solaris general purpose operating system from Sun and its SunSoft subsidiary. The agreement also includes a new license to Sun for Novell's NetWare UNIX Client technology.
The license covers rights to UNIX System technology last licensed to Sun in 1989. The renegotiated agreement does not cover subsequent releases of Novell's UNIX system technology which Sun has not used in their product offerings.
Separately, Sun has signed a license agreement for Novell's NetWare Unix Client technology to permit Solaris-based UNIX workstations to be clients to NetWare-based servers. The agreement provides Novell NetWare data transport protocols that Sun can use to tightly integrate its operating systems with multivendor NetWare network computing environments.
"Our support of Sun will help accelerate the growth of the market for UNIX systems," said Raymond J. Noorda, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Novell. "These agreements strengthen our partnership with Sun at both the UNIX and NetWare level. By expanding our collaborative efforts, our two companies will better support our customers' multivendor solutions while leveraging the value of the UNIX system."
The renegotiation of Sun's 1989 UNIX technology license reflects Novell's belief in "coopetition" within the UNIX system vendor community. The license Novell has sold to Sun is intended to support Sun's role in contributing to market growth by lowering their cost of bringing Solaris products to market and supporting competitive customer choices.
Novell and Sun are among the world's leading UNIX system vendors who have signed Common Operating System Environment agreements to support the industry's SPEC 1170, which defines a unified UNIX system as one open multi-vendor standard. In addition, Novell is granting relicense rights for the UNIX trademark to X/Open Company Ltd., a computer user and vendor market consortium. Vendors have also agreed to license the trademark UNIX from X/Open for labeling their products built to support SPEC 1170. Both Sun and Novell anticipate delivering their respective UNIX system products in compliance with SPEC 1170 in 1995.
SPEC 1170 is a set of application programming interfaces for delivering application compatibility across product offerings from the world's UNIX vendor community. The specification has been endorsed by more than 80 leading UNIX system vendors and software providers.
Novell's UNIX Systems Group licenses UNIX System V technology to more than 2,000 customers worldwide. The latest generation is UNIX System V Release 4.2 MP, a symmetrical multiprocessing version. Later this year the newest version of this technology will be available through UnixWare 2.0, combining Release 4.2 MP technology with tight integration with Novell NetWare network system software. Novell licenses UnixWare to OEMs for use with their systems. The company also distributes UnixWare through reseller channels as a complete UNIX operating system for distributed application servers and network clients running on industry standard Intel architecture computers.
In addition, Novell's UNIX Systems Group is the industry's leading supplier of TCP/IP network communications protocols. LAN WorkPlace products provide TCP/IP for DOS, MS Windows, Macintosh and OS/2 computers to enable them to communicate with host computers and across internets using TCP/IP. Shipments have grown to more than 90,000 network seats a month in early 1994.
Novell, Inc. is the leading computer networking company worldwide, an information system software company, developer of network services, SPECialized and general purpose operating system products, and application programming tools. Novell's NetWare, UnixWare and AppWare families of products provide matched software components for distributing information resources within local, wide area and internetworked information systems.