IBM Pushes Advanced Internet Projects
IBM has announced a litany of Advanced Internet Projects that will help emerging high-speed networks best take advantage future advances in Internet technology. Having placed a good deal of emphasis on e-business during the past year, IBM's finds planning for the future of the Internet in its best interest.
"The Internet of tomorrow isn't just about bigger, faster pipes, it's about what you are able to do because of that increased bandwidth," says Irving Wladawsky-Berger, general manager of IBM's Internet Division. "IBM's goal is to help customers exploit the full potential of e-business by delivering business applications and services that take full advantage of this era of emerging, high-speed networks."
According to published reports, highlights of IBM's announcement include:
* The International Center for Advanced Internet Research (iCAIR), a global project IBM launched with Northwestern University to create advanced Internet applications. ICAIR is expected to enable collaboration among researchers around the world, leveraging advanced research projects to rapidly deploy breakthrough, interactive applications with enterprise customers such as global multi-party videoconferencing to virtual reality-enabled manufacturing and design, collaborative engineering and full-screen, interactive distance learning.
* The European Advanced Internet Applications Center will be established in the Netherlands in partnership with the Telematics Institute and SURFnet, and is expected to be operational in the second half of this year. The Center is being created to extend IBM's technologic innovation and expertise to European customers ready to deploy advanced Internet technologies, including: videostreaming, collaboration tools and learning spaces. This center will also focus on ways to maximize distributed storage technology to enhance network performance.
Other Advanced Internet Project IBM is involved with throughout the world involve work on emerging technologies (such as the Internet2 and QBone projects), standards and public policy issues.
--L. Greenemeier