Sun Rises At LastSun Rises At Last

The acquisition of MySQL by Sun Microsystems, right on the heels of the Oracle-BEA merger, is great news for everyone. After languishing on the sidelines for years, Sun has, in a single stroke, reclaimed its relevance, taken the open source movement a step further, and opened up new (and promising) options for customers. It's like Sun shaking us by the shoulders, saying "Wake up; I have some good news for you."Sun had already made a major foray into open source with OpenSolaris, in competition with Linux (a hard nut to crack, indeed), and has had various other irons smoldering in the fire for years (Java etc.). But the acquisition of MySQL does more than provide Sun with ownership of perhaps the best-known open source database - it also fills in a critical gap in Sun's enterprise offering and helps glue together Sun's technologies into a more compelling offering.

Take a look at Sun's (formative) integrated portfolio of technologies: the Solaris operating system (a market-leader in the days of Unix), Xen based virtualization (the wave of the future), the Java language (arguably one of top two development platforms out there), the OpenOffice suite of productivity tools (not pulling its weight yet, but holds promise)…and now a popular, proven database in MySQL.

Consider: How long will it take for Sun to compile a formidable operating environment for business applications by integrating Solaris and MySQL, together with various virtualization options, and with unsurpassed Java expertise at hand? This would be an open source solution stack with proven technologies that customers could ignore only this at their own risk.

This is good news for MySQL as well. Although it has already carved out a name for itself, it stands to benefit greatly from Sun's brand name and years of solid enterprise experience, Sun's stable of technologies, and the opportunity to be a part of a larger persuasive story to customers.

Thus, taking stock:

• Filling in the missing piece for Sun? Check • Credibility to the open source movement? Check • Wider market opportunities for MySQL? Check • Benefits for customers? Check • Exciting options for infrastructure and solution architects? Check

What's not to like about this acquisition? After years of forgettable lassitude, Sun is once again a company to watch for. Now to sit back, pray that Sun can execute the vision, and watch the stock rise (Hey, we all have our dreams).The acquisition of MySQL by Sun Microsystems, right on the heels of the Oracle-BEA merger, is great news for everyone. After languishing on the sidelines for years, Sun has, in a single stroke, reclaimed its relevance, taken the open source movement a step further, and opened up new (and promising) options for customers.