Also: Microsoft grabs minority stake in Vintela; San Francisco plans public Wi-Fi infrastructure; India plans outsourcing city; Cisco buys Jahi Networks
Oracle last week said it intends to begin issuing cumulative software patches for Oracle Database, E-Business Suite, Application Server, Oracle Enterprise Manager and Collaboration Suite on a quarterly basis next year, beginning Jan. 18. Oracle’s other three scheduled patch-release updates will be April 12, July 12 and Oct. 18. Oracle’s chief security officer, Mary Ann Davidson, said the quarterly software-patch updates would address any needed security fixes and non-security-related changes in Oracle products. The planned updates, which Oracle calls Critical Patch Updates, are intended to make it easier for Oracle customers to handle the software maintenance process, which typically requires shutting down servers and testing applications to ensure they run correctly after a patch is applied. Oracle has selected four days in the year it believes will let it avoid disrupting business processes such as end-of-quarter efforts to close the books on financials. Oracle will make an exception to the quarterly patch process if it has to issue a high-severity security alert because of a vulnerability discovered in any Oracle product, particularly if an exploit for it was known to exist in the wild.
Microsoft last week came as close at it might ever get to supporting Unix and Linux when it took a minority stake in integration vendor Vintela. Vintela has been cranking out software over the past few months to extend Windows-based authentication, management and monitoring capabilities to Unix, Linux and Macintosh operating systems. Neither Microsoft nor Vintela would reveal the size of the investment, although sources said it was less than $10 million. In addition to the infusion of capital, the pair also agreed to a set of commercial agreements that will have Microsoft providing Tier-1 support for corporate customers. The agreements also include licensing for a series of undisclosed Windows protocols that will tie Vintela’s products more tightly to Microsoft’s infrastructure software. Speaking of Microsoft and Linux, the software maker’s CEO Steve Ballmer last week warned Asian governments that they could face intellectual rights-infringement lawsuits for using rival open source operating platforms such as Linux. Ballmer, speaking in Singapore at Microsoft’s Asian Government Leaders Forum, said that Linux violated more than 228 patents. He did not provide any detail on the alleged violations, which the Linux community disputes.
San Francisco became the latest city in the country planning to build a public wireless infrastructure. Mayor Gavin Newsom said last week: “We will not stop until every San Franciscan has access to free wireless Internet service,” he said in his annual state of the city address. “No San Franciscan should be without a computer and a broadband connection.” He said the city already had made free Wi-Fi service available at Union Square, a central shopping and tourist hub, and would add access to several other sections of the city, including Civic Center around City Hall. Philadelphia, San Jose and other cities also have started setting up large areas of Wi-Fi coverage.
Southern India’s Kerala state last week said it plans to attract overseas companies by building Smart City, a 1,000-acre site where technology companies from around the world will be invited to set up operations. The area will feature office space, residences, schools and an entertainment complex. It will include software developers and call centers – two of the Indian economy’s fastest-growing sectors. Smart City will be created and managed by Dubai’s Internet City, a free trade zone backed by the country’s government. It is being built with an initial investment of $400 million from various investors. Dubai’s Internet City offers foreign companies 100% tax-free ownership, no currency restrictions, easy registration, and licensing and protection of intellectual property, its Web site says. Indian states are competing with one another to court investments from IT companies, trying to emulate the success of the southern technology hubs of Bangalore and Hyderabad.
Cisco last week said it was buying privately held Jahi Networks of San Jose, a provider of network management appliances designed to simplify device deployment, configuration and management. Under the terms of the agreement, Cisco will pay approximately $16 million in cash and assumed options. The acquisition of Jahi is expected to close in the second quarter of Cisco’s fiscal year 2005. Jahi was founded in 2003 and has 20 employees in San Jose and Hyderabad, India.
