Websphere News Desk
IBM Unveils Apache Geronimo Software for SOA Web Services
WAS CE Designed to Provide Flexible, Affordable Alternative
Oct. 25, 2005 12:00 PM
IBM has announced a new open source-based software and support initiative, called WebSphere Application Server Community Edition (WAS CE). To be available later this year, the software is designed to provide mid-sized businesses, departments in large enterprises and business partners with easy access to open source-based technologies with no upfront costs. WAS CE is customizable application server software that features a small footprint, making it easier to download and manage.

Based on core open source technology from the J2EE-certified Apache Geronimo application server, WAS CE and related subscription support provide a flexible and affordable alternative to traditional commercial software offerings and can help customers begin to deploy a Service Oriented Architecture (SOA).
WAS CE includes technology from Gluecode Software, which IBM acquired in May. With this new offering WAS CE, IBM broadens the range of customer choice for infrastructure software, while providing a transition to more feature-rich versions of WebSphere, the industry’s leading standards-based middleware.
WAS CE helps Java developers reduce the complexity of application development by pre-integrating the most common services for building applications. It offers customers the choice of a blended commercial offering that provides the innovation of open source as well as greater stability and higher levels of support that comes from IBM. The new software supports Apache Tomcat, an industry standard Web server also from the Apache Software Foundation and WAS CE will also integrate IBM’s Cloudscape database, which is based on the open source Apache Derby Project.
"Customers are looking for support for open source technologies from a trusted IT vendor,” said Robert LeBlanc, general manager, WebSphere, IBM Software Group. “WAS CE allows customers and partners to tap the innovation of open source technology -- backed by industry leading IBM support services -- to quickly develop and deploy applications based on open source technologies.”
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