Sun, Manugistics Say Software Will Be Cheaper To Install

In one of the first implementations of Sun Chairman Scott McNealy's promise to cut software costs, he and Manugistics have announced an integrated supply-chain stack designed to be simpler to configure and install.

McNealy has charged that system software was overpriced "by a factor of 10" and has promised to change that. Monday, Sun Microsystems and Manugistics Group Inc., the third-largest maker of supply-chain software by revenue, created a software stack that combines Manugistics' 20 to 30 supply-chain applications with Sun's Java Enterprise System. Java Enterprise System includes Directory Server, Identity Server, Application Server, and Portal Server for $100 per user per year.

While Manugistics apps run with any Java 2 Enterprise Edition application server, including BEA Systems' Web Logic, the combined stack will include Sun's Directory Server and Identity Server, the latter incorporating the specifications of the Liberty Alliance Project, a consortium of consumer and technology companies behind Sun-backed security standards. Sun has been the first to produce an Identity Server implementing the alliance's standards, says Terri Gudger, senior director of Sun global alliances.

Manugistics already sells its supply-chain apps on Sun Sparc hardware and Solaris-based software.

"In 15 minutes, you can be up and running. We have optimized them to work together," says John Vrankovich, senior director of architecture for Manugistics.

Gudger says the average combined sale of Sun and Manugistics products in the last quarter was $650,000 to $750,000. She said future pricing of the software combination was up to Manugistics, but noted that Manugistics would receive the benefit of Sun's reduced software prices. Manugistics would in theory sell the combined package and receive a higher return on each sale and/or pass some of the savings along to customers, she says.

Vrankovich says pricing will depend on customer configurations, but notes the combined system will be simple enough for customers to self-install. Says Vrankovich, "You won't need consultants to come in to get it into operation."