HSBC Taps Microsoft-Novell Agreement to Reduce Linux Cost and Complexity

HSBC Taps Microsoft-Novell Agreement to Reduce Linux Cost and Complexity

-Global bank selects SUSE Linux Enterprise as its standard Linux distribution, citing interoperability with Windows Active Directory and integrated Windows and Linux platform support.

REDMOND, Wash., and WALTHAM, Mass. — March 13, 2007 — Microsoft Corp. and Novell Inc. today announced that HSBC, one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organizations, has joined the growing number of global firms taking advantage of the recent collaboration between Microsoft and Novell. Under the agreement, Microsoft will deliver to HSBC certificates for three-year priority support subscriptions to SUSE® Linux Enterprise Server from Novell®, as HSBC moves to standardize its Linux* deployments on one distribution. By reducing the diversity of its Linux environment, HSBC will be able to reduce its total cost of ownership (TCO) for Linux, and improve interoperability with its existing Microsoft® Windows® infrastructure.

“The Microsoft-Novell agreement is a great catalyst to helping us reduce the complexity of our Linux environment as we standardize our Linux infrastructure with SUSE Linux Enterprise and continue to extend the use of Microsoft Active Directory®,” said Matthew O’Neill, group head of Distributed Systems for HSBC Global IT Operations. “Some will be surprised to learn that our Windows environment has a lower total cost of ownership than our current Linux environment. Our decision to simplify our mixed-source environment with Microsoft and Novell will allow us to reduce the cost and complexity. That’s why we have selected Novell as our preferred Linux partner to support our Linux infrastructure going forward.”

Headquartered in London, HSBC’s international network includes more than 9,500 offices with 284,000 employees in 76 countries. HSBC has 125 million customers, 25 million of whom are registered for Internet banking. HSBC provides a comprehensive range of financial services including personal financial services; commercial banking; corporate, investment banking and markets; private banking; and other activities.

Roger Levy, vice president and general manager of Open Platform Solutions for Novell, is joining HSBC’s Open Source Software Committee as a nonvoting advisor. “The ability of HSBC to reduce complexity, simplify support and increase its IT agility is a testament to the mission of Novell’s agreement with Microsoft — to help customers win,” Levy said. “Novell is pleased to become HSBC’s trusted Linux partner, and standardizing Linux on SUSE Linux Enterprise Server will give the company a rock-solid foundation that will seamlessly interact with its Windows environment.”

“Our customers tell us that they want technology vendors to work better together — that’s what our agreement with Novell is all about,” said Susan Hauser, general manager of strategic partnerships and licensing at Microsoft. “Founded on intellectual property assurance, our interoperability efforts are helping HSBC apply best practices from its Windows infrastructure to lower TCO for its Linux environment.”

The Microsoft-Novell Agreement

On Nov. 2, 2006, Novell and Microsoft announced a series of agreements to jointly build, market and support new solutions to improve interoperability, deliver powerful new virtualization capabilities, make Microsoft and Novell products work better together, and give customers peace of mind that both companies stand behind the products they deliver. As part of this five-year agreement, Microsoft can use, resell or distribute certificates that customers redeem to receive SUSE Linux Enterprise Server subscriptions for upgrades, updates and technical support from Novell.

Since the announcement, more than 40,000 new certificates for three-year priority support subscriptions to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server have been activated under the Microsoft and Novell collaboration agreement. AIG Technologies Inc., Deutsche Bank AG, Credit Suisse and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. are among the first companies taking advantage of the benefits of the interoperability agreement between Microsoft and Novell.

More information about the Microsoft and Novell agreement, including other customer announcements, can be found at http://www.novell.com/linux/microsoft and http://www.microsoft.com/interop/msnovellcollab/default.mspx.

About Novell

Novell, Inc. (Nasdaq: NOVL) delivers infrastructure software for the Open Enterprise. We are a leader in enterprise-wide operating systems based on Linux and open source and the security and systems management services required to operate mixed IT environments. We help our customers minimize cost, complexity and risk, allowing them to focus on innovation and growth. For more information, visit http://www.novell.com.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

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Microsoft, Windows and Active Directory are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.

Novell and SUSE are registered trademarks of Novell, Inc. in the United States and other countries.

*Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. All other third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

For more information, press only:

Kevan Barney for Novell, (801) 861-2931, kbarney@novell.com

Rapid Response Team, Waggener Edstrom Worldwide for Microsoft, (503) 443-7070, rrt@waggeneredstrom.com

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