IBM Targets Small-Business Market

 

April 11, 2007 -- IBM on Tuesday launched a low-cost, all-in-one IT hardware package for businesses with as few as five employees.

The System i Express, unveiled at a news conference in San Francisco, allows small-business owners to purchase servers to run business applications on a per-user basis, enabling them to expand the system at the same pace as their business, the company said.

Designed for five to 40 users, the system starts at $7,995 for an initial five user licenses, and $1,250 for every additional five users -- about a third of the price of the current version of the hardware, the company said. The package includes a built-in workload manager, as well as tech support during working hours, the company said.

"Every small and medium business has one thing in common -- the need to serve their customers and be ready for growth," Mark Shearer, the general manager of IBM System i, said in a statement. "With IBM System i Express, a small to medium business can effectively manage all functions critical to the business and focus on driving their business forward."

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