Thursday, December 01, 2005

Sun Offers Free Version of Java Tools - New York Times

Sun Offers Free Version of Java Tools - New York Times: "Sun Microsystems, the network computer company, said Wednesday that it would offer a free version of its Java Enterprise System, a set of development programs that includes application server software.
Sun also said it would no longer charge for use of its Sun N1 management software and other developer tools.
...
Sun currently charges companies $140 per user per month for the Java Enterprise System, including support services. That fee will remain unchanged for companies that want to continue getting those services."

It'll be interesting to see if Sun can successfully adopt the JBoss business model. I suspect this type of move will also lead to more assessments of the relative need for support services by software product/initiative -- if there is going to be a major value shift from licensing to support/services, prospective customers will quite reasonably want to know what they're being asked to pay for -- i.e., the relative emphasis on bug fixes, new features/functions, usable and timely documentation, etc...

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