BEA Solidifies Leadership Position in Java Virtualization with New Performance Results, Expanded Product Roadmap and Instance-Based Pricing Model


WebLogic Server Virtual Edition Delivers Over 2x Efficiency Gains; BEA to Roll Out Products as Virtual Appliances Along with Pricing Model to Support its Liquid Enterprise Vision

Core News Facts

1. WebLogic Server Virtual Edition achieves up to 40% better throughput performance than applications running a virtualized full operating system (OS), translating directly to increased utilization and lower total cost of ownership (TCO).

2. BEA to make products within its Enterprise 360 platform available as pre-configured virtual appliances starting with WebLogic Portal and AquaLogic Service Bus in support of its Liquid Enterprise vision.

3. BEA unveils new instance-based pricing model designed to provide greater flexibility and overall value to customers.

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 11 / -- BEAWorld 2007 -- BEA Systems, Inc., a world leader in enterprise infrastructure software, today announced new performance results and unveiled major product plans that will help the company expand its leadership role in Java virtualization and further execute on its Liquid Enterprise vision.

According to early lab test results jointly conducted by BEA and Intel, LiquidVM -- the foundational technology behind WebLogic Server® Virtual Edition, runs Java over two times more efficiently than using the normal OS-based software stack on VMware Infrastructure. Because LiquidVM runs directly on top of the VMware ESX Server hypervisor platform without a traditional OS, it can manage memory resources for Java applications much more efficiently than the alternative OS model. This can help enable customers to increase hardware utilization and thereby reduce TCO. This approach to enterprise Java virtualization is unique in the industry; no other product to date has been able to match this level of performance.

BEA also announced that it is making key components of its Enterprise 360 offering available as virtual appliances ready to run directly in virtualized environments such as VMware Infrastructure. The company will start with WebLogic® Portal and AquaLogic® Service Bus, expected early next year, and eventually support additional products under the virtual appliance paradigm as part of its Liquid Enterprise strategy. Under this model, enterprise applications and the infrastructure that supports them can be configured and deployed independent of the underlying server and operating system. This can allow service-oriented architecture (SOA) services to be treated as virtual appliances that can be deployed whenever and wherever needed, representing a major shift in the software industry.

"BEA is the first major software infrastructure vendor to respond to this shift with a unique product strategy and accompanying pricing model designed to help customers optimize SOA infrastructure technology to take full advantage of virtualization," said Guy Churchward, vice president of WebLogic Products. "We are leading the enterprise Java industry in building support for virtualization into our products and in making the vision of the Liquid Enterprise that much closer to being realized."

As part of its virtual appliance strategy, BEA also unveiled a new pricing model based on how many instances of software a customer has deployed. In contrast to traditional CPU-based pricing, a customer only pays for actual software usage, regardless of the underlying hardware. For example, in running a single instance of BEA software, a customer would pay the same amount regardless of whether they are running it on a single CPU box or a box with multiple multi-core CPUs on a virtual machine using the combined resources of several physical servers. Instance-based pricing is designed to provide greater flexibility, simplified accounting and tracking and higher accuracy in planning and budgeting for software costs.

In the two months that BEA WebLogic Server Virtual Edition has been shipping, the product has received broad industry recognition. Most recently the product was selected as the sole recipient of VMware's 2007 Virtual Vanguard Awards for the category of Most Successful Virtual Appliance Developed by an ISV. WebLogic Server Virtual Edition was chosen by VMware because it's designed to have the ability to drive unprecedented efficiency through improved hardware resource utilization while lowering licensing and maintenance costs.

"BEA has demonstrated that WebLogic Server Virtual Edition can enable customers to achieve substantial TCO savings and performance benefits," said Brian Byun, vice president of global partners and solutions at VMware. "We continue to work very closely with BEA and are excited about the product plans they announced today. In adopting the virtual appliance model across their product platform, BEA is taking a truly innovative and leadership approach in the Java virtualization space."

Availability

BEA WebLogic Server Virtual Edition is available immediately. To download, please visit www.bea.com/virtualization. A technology preview of WebLogic Server Virtual Edition 9.2 v1.1 is also available at commerce.bea.com/. BEA WebLogic Portal and BEA AquaLogic Service Bus will be delivered as virtual appliances the first half of 2008.

About BEAWorld

BEAWorld is the premier event for SOA thought leadership and is scheduled to take place in three strategic world markets spanning the Americas, Europe and Asia. The conference is designed to provide critical insights, hands-on instruction, best-practice strategies and opportunities for interaction with like-minded professionals, industry leaders, visionaries and expert practitioners.

In addition to highlighting the innovation and tangible business results BEA customers have achieved, BEAWorld is the place to find the latest information on BEA infrastructure technologies including BEA Tuxedo®, BEA WebLogic®, BEA AquaLogic® and BEA Enterprise 360. This year's event will also include a Solutions Showcase, exhibiting the latest and most innovative developments from the extensive BEA partner community.

The first of three planned worldwide events is scheduled to be held in the Moscone West building in San Francisco (Sept. 10-12). Two additional shows are scheduled in the following cities: Barcelona (Oct. 2-4) and Shanghai (Dec. 12-13).

About BEA

BEA Systems, Inc. is a world leader in enterprise infrastructure software. Information about how BEA helps customers build a Liquid Enterprise(TM) that transforms their business can be found at bea.com.

Source: BEA Systems, Inc.

CONTACT: Press,Kelly Clarke of BEA Systems, Inc., +1-408-570-8526, kclarke@bea.com; or Katherine Domingo of Hill & Knowlton, +1-415-281-7174, katherine.domingo@hillandknowlton.com, for BEA Systems, Inc.; or Analyst, Joe Hnilo of BEA Systems, Inc., +1-408-570-8314, jhnilo@bea.com

Web site: http://www.bea.com/

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