April 22, 1998
Unisys and Hitachi, Ltd., Collaborate on Object-Oriented Software- Unisys licenses object technology from Hitachi and jointly develops Object-Oriented COBOL on ClearPath HMP IX -Under the development agreement, the two companies will interconnect Hitachi's Windows NT (R) workstation-based OOCOBOL compiler front-end with Unisys COBOL back-end compiler technology to produce a new Object-Oriented COBOL product for the Unisys ClearPath HMP IX system. The resulting jointly developed product will utilize Windows NT workstations and the Intel node of ClearPath HMP IX systems for COBOL development and first phase compile and the OS2200 node for final code generation and runtime execution. The resulting product will provide full COBOL 85 compatibility along with object-oriented and Unisys defined language extensions. Inter-language binding with Unisys Universal Compiling System (UCS) programs is also supported. "With Hitachi's OOCOBOL we saw an opportunity to provide Unisys ClearPath HMP IX clients with a tremendous step forward as they modernize their existing COBOL applications. We wanted to provide our customers with a best-of-breed desktop development environment, coupled with the new object-oriented capabilities needed for tomorrow's applications and our scalable ClearPath HMP IX enterprise compiler technology. Hitachi's OOCOBOL technology, combined with Unisys UCS technology, provided the perfect fit," said Brian Hadfield, vice president and general manager of the Unisys ClearPath Business Initiative. "Hitachi is focusing on developing object-oriented technology and expanding the market.", notes Mitsuhiko Kodaira, general manager of Hitachi's Software Development Center. "Hitachi added object-oriented functionality to COBOL in 1994 in the first implementation of Object-Oriented COBOL in the world and has been marketing the product integrated with desktop development environments. This collaboration with Unisys, which has an established reputation for COBOL and systems technology, will provide COBOL users of Unisys ClearPath HMP IX enterprise servers with an object-oriented upgrade path and a powerful set of solutions. It is our pleasure that the relationship between Hitachi and Unisys becomes much stronger and enables us to provide an excellent solution to users." Enterprise systems have a vast amount of COBOL assets. Adding object-oriented technology to COBOL is of key importance for the effective utilization of these assets in the 21st century. An Object-Oriented Specification for COBOL has been under development since 1990 by COBOL Standard Committees, NCITS J4 in the United States and ISO/IEC JTC1/SC22/WG4 internationally. Unisys and Hitachi have been contributing to this development from the beginning. About Hitachi Hitachi, Ltd., headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is one of the world's leading global electronics companies, with fiscal 1996 (ending March 31, 1997) consolidated sales of 8,523 billion yen ($68.7 billion*). The company manufactures and markets a wide range of products, including computers, semiconductors, consumer products and power and industrial equipment. For more information on Hitachi, Ltd., please visit Hitachi's Web site at http://www.hitachi.co.jp. (* at an exchange rate of 124 yen to the dollar) About Unisys Unisys is an information technology solutions provider that has a portfolio of information services, technologies and third-party alliances needed to help clients capitalize on their information asset to enhance their competitiveness and responsiveness to customers. Unisys expertise is founded on the strengths of three global businesses: Information Services, providing consulting, application solutions, systems integration and outsourcing; Computer Systems, providing industry-leading technologies; and Global Customer Services, delivering comprehensive services and products supporting distributed computing environments. Access the Unisys home page on the World Wide Web -- http://www.unisys.com -- for further information. Unisys is a registered trademark and ClearPath is a trademark of Unisys Corporation. OOCOBOL is a trademark of Hitachi, Ltd. Windows NT is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. All other brands and products referenced herein are acknowledged to be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
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