In Brief: Microsoft and HP join forces for appliance blitz
synopsis
In Brief – Microsoft and HP recently firmed up their commitment to the data warehouse and BI space by announcing a portfolio of appliances that pull together the infrastructure of HP with the information management and BI tools of Microsoft. At first glance this announcement might seem like Microsoft and HP are playing catch-up with others in the market; however on closer inspection it's worth calling out a couple of subtle differences.
key messages
- Microsoft and HP have announced four new appliances for data management and BI as part of their three-year $250 million 'Frontline' partnership launched last year
- This is a necessary and inevitable move by HP and Microsoft especially if they don't want to be perceived as late to market
- The appliances are likely to appeal to organisations who want the ability to plug and play BI and data warehousing technology without having to waste time and effort on assembling the hardware and software infrastructure separately.
