Novell to Sell and Provide Support, Training and Maintenance For Netline's Open-Xchange Collaboration Server

Novell to Sell and Provide Support, Training and Maintenance For Netline's Open-Xchange Collaboration Server

OLPE, Germany, Dec 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Netline Internet Service announced today that Novell will sell and provide training, maintenance and support for Netline's market-leading Open-Xchange Server, extending and enhancing their current relationship. The company also unveiled details of integrating Netline's Open-Xchange Server into Novell's DeveloperNet program and partnership and sales processes.

Netline's Open-Xchange Server, the engine behind Novell's SUSE LINUX Openexchange Server (NOVL), is a modular, standards-based communications tool that provides businesses with flexible groupware functions including e-mail, calendar, contacts, tasks and real-time document storage. The Open-Xchange Server brand will replace the former brand of SUSE LINUX Openexchange Server.

"Open-Xchange is clearly the leading open source collaboration server on the market today and Novell wants to ensure that current SUSE LINUX Openexchange Server customers continue to receive support, training and maintenance of the product," said Ed Anderson, vice president of marketing for Linux, Open Source Platforms and Services, Novell. "We have received a significant amount of interest in Open-Xchange, and we believe that this agreement ensures continuity and support of the product."

"IDC's studies indicate that Linux is often asked to support electronic messaging and collaborative software," said Dan Kusnetzky, IDC's VP of system software research. "This agreement is clearly in line with the trends IDC is observing today."

Netline expects to release the commercial Open-Xchange server in the first quarter of 2005. The open source version of Open-Xchange is available free by download at (http://www.open-xchange.org/ and http://www.openexchange.com/) and features most of the award-winning attributes of the commercial product - running on the major Linux operating systems -- but without support and maintenance, third-party applications and connectors.

As part of the agreement, Novell will contribute SUSE LINUX Openexchange code to the Open-Xchange community and Netline will be fully integrated into Novell's DeveloperNet program - enabling Netline to seamlessly integrate Open- Xchange with existing Novell technology (Evolution, Novell Linux Desktop, ZENworks). Novell will also provide sales, training, maintenance and first- and second level-support for Open-Xchange -- with Netline supplying third- level support.

"Novell has the most extensive open source sales, support and maintenance in the world," said Frank Hoberg, CEO, Netline Internet Service. "This agreement extends our existing relationship with SUSE/Novell and also enables us to leverage Novell's world-wide infrastructure and enterprise software expertise."

Open-Xchange is a collaboration platform that integrates open source and proprietary servers and clients. Accessible through a common web browser, Open-Xchange allows users to share e-mail, calendar, tasks, threaded discussions and documents originating from both proprietary and open source systems.

Because the web-based interface of Open-Xchange runs on all major browsers, employees can use its services regardless of the client operating system. They can access the entire functionality of Open-Xchange with any computer connected to the Internet and any common platform, including Windows, Linux, Unix, MacOS, and PalmOS.

About Netline

Netline Internet Service GmbH is a market leader in Linux-based groupware, collaboration, and messaging in the SMB segment. Netline's Groupware which is based on the Netline Java Application Server is the core engine of Novell's award winning SUSE LINUX Openexchange Server. Since 1996 Netline -- based in Olpe, Germany -- has been developing java-based 3-tier web applications for the SMB market.


Source: Netline Internet Service

CONTACT: Bill Baker of Baker Communications, +1-860-350-9100,
wbaker@bakercg.com, for Netline Internet Service

Web site: http://www.open-xchange.org/
http://www.openexchange.com/


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