The software Ballmer nearly scrapped
Software giant Microsoft is about to release its new System Center 2012 software which it hopes will give VMWare a kick in the nadgers.
Brad Anderson, a vice president in Microsoft's management and security division said the software is in the final testing phase. It is used with Windows and virtualization software, letting companies turn their servers into so-called private clouds. The offering is cheaper than VMware's competing product and has equivalent features, he claimed.
Analysts say that although VMware has an edge in the world of “private clouds” the feeling is that with this software the stage is being set for a very brutal competition between the two. Most of the battle will be around price because VMware's functionality has been so much better that they haven't had to compete on price. With Microsoft in the market price is going to become fairly crucial.
But Microsoft has not always seen the value of having such a competition. CEO Steve Ballmer came close to killing off the project. He is probably thanking his stars he didn't, just like he must be happy Yahoo were dumb enough to turn down his buyout offer.
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