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Sun acquiring MySQL for $1bn
Matthew Aslett, January 16, 2008 @ 8:29 am ETIt says here. Yes, the same Sun that’s spent the last two years building a PostgreSQL support business. Funnily enough, Jonathan Schwartz doesn’t mention PostgreSQL in his announcement blog post. One thing he does mention is that the company plans to introduce new support options for MySQL.
“I’ve asked our team to negotiate an arms’ length commercial transaction, prior to closing, that allows us to provide Global Enterprise Support for MySQL - so that traditional enterprises looking for the same mission critical support they’ve come to expect with proprietary databases can have that peace of mind with MySQL, as well. This gives traditional enterprises a world of new choices and competition.”
I’m not convinced that customers would trust Sun to provide support for the MySQL products if they don’t trust the people that wrote it, but I stand to be corrected. More on this once we’ve digested it.
Update - Kaj Arno has posted a Q&A for MySQL users, developers and employees. It appears Marten Mickos will continue to lead the MySQL effort within Sun. Zack Urlocker has posted here and here.
Update 2 - Sun says it will support both MySQL and PostgreSQL (see below)
Update 3 - For further information on the Sun/MySQL deal see A few further thoughts on Sun/MySQL and Putting a value on MySQL.
Categories: M&A, Software
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Acquiring ???
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The PostgreSQL support business is still firmly in place, and Josh Berkus is positive about Sun acquiring MySQL - he says
Thanks for the info Simon. It sounded from the conference call as if Sun will do everything it can to position MySQL at the mission-critical apps tier, which PostgreSQL has previously claimed as its own. It will be interesting to see how supporting both works in practice.
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