Sun Takes Step Forward In Portal MarketSun Takes Step Forward In Portal Market

IPlanet, the software division of Sun Microsystems, Tuesday unveiled messaging and calendaring server upgrades that support Sun's push into the corporate portal market. As point releases, the enhancements in the iPlanet Messaging Server 5.2 and Calendar Server 5.1 are not major. However, the announcements highlight Sun's focus on building a competitive package within the portal market, which the company sees as a potential moneymaker. "Portals are an extremely interesting item for enterprises," says John Fanelli, director of product marketing for iPlanet.

Software sales have become increasingly important to Sun as hardware sales, still the bulk of its revenue, have dropped dramatically. Sun's overall revenue was down 40% in the first six months of its fiscal year. The calendar and messaging servers provide valuable services to the iPlanet Portal Server, which companies can use to build Web-based interfaces for delivering applications and information to employees, partners, and customers. Companies willing to look at a vendor's portal tools is also apt to discuss supporting software, such as directories and messaging, and the platform for running these applications. "It sort of opens up the enterprise," Fanelli says.

The evolving mechanism for tying all the applications within Sun's portal framework is Web services, an emerging set of standards for using XML for software integration. iPlanet Application Server 6.5, which ships in March, will be the key component for deploying and managing Web services, Fanelli says. Sun's Forte development tools include the Java Web Services Developer Pack, which will also be integrated into the application server.

New capabilities within the iPlanet Messaging Server include a proxy for secure access to E-mail through a Web browser and Short Messaging Service for sending text messages to handheld devices with small displays. The application runs on multiple platforms, including Sun Solaris, which makes up the bulk of current deployments; HP-UX; and Windows NT. Sun also markets the messaging server as a hub for companies with multiple E-mail applications, such as Netscape, Microsoft Outlook, and Eudora. New features within iPlanet Calendar Server 5.1 include a Web-based interface and automatic mail invitations and notification of scheduled events. In addition, the application provides mouse-over views of links to get descriptions of events and invitees without launching the full document. Both products sell for between $20 and $30 per user, with volume discounts available.