InformationWeek

November 10, 1997

Lotus Aims At NCs

Java-based eSuite offers applets that are configurable to users' needs

otus Development Corp. officially announced last week its eSuite WorkPlace, the IBM subsidiary's suite of Java-based productivity applets. Lotus also announced an impressive number of partnerships in connection with eSuite: Sun Microsystems, Oracle, Novell, America Online, Intel, Netscape, and of course, IBM.

Lotus' goal is to make the eSuite applets the standard for network computers. Those friends help. "It's uncharacteristic for so many vendors to get behind one company," says Lotus president Jeff Papows. He addressed a packed house at New York's Millennium Hotel, where the product introduction was made. The eSuite technology, formerly known as Kona, has been under development at Lotus for about a year. Originally due in September, eSuite Workplace now is scheduled for a beta pilot in December, with a full release due in January-in time for the Lotusphere conference.

eSuite WorkPlace is a set of task-specific applets, configurable according to user needs, that includes E-mail, spreadsheet, word processing, calendar, and other components. The suite will be priced "aggressively," according to Papows, at $49. Lotus also officially introduced eSuite DevPack, a Java-based developers' toolkit for building applications that work with eSuite applets. eSuite DevPack is scheduled for pilot in January and to ship in the first quarter. It will be priced at $1,495.

New Technology Phase
Lotus maintains that eSuite WorkPlace is part of the next phase in the development of computing technology. "As we move forward to phase three, it's moved by the convergence of E-mail, groupware, and the Web," said Papows. eSuite, because it is based on Java, Sun's cross-platform programming language, exemplifies that conver gence, said Papows. Lotus has been a major supporter of Java, as is Lotus parent IBM. "Java is real, secure, and enterprise-ready," said Papows.

According to Lotus, eSuite workplace will enter the market primarily through bundling deals with hardware and software vendors. IBM will ship eSuite with its Network Station series 1000 line of network computers. Lotus is working with Sun to deliver eSuite for Sun's JavaStation. Oracle will ship the eSuite applets with its InterOffice suite of back-office applications, while Oracle's network computer subsidiary, NCI, will deliver eSuite with its machines. A second version of eSuite Workplace is being planned for later in 1998 and will incorporate technology from many of those partners, Papows said.

Perhaps the most interesting eSuite bedfellow is America Online, the consumer online service. AOL will make eSuite calendar and mail applets available to millions of its members worldwide via AOL's Instant Messenger service. AOL eventually plans to deliver the enti re eSuite to AOL members.

Embedded Functionality
Analysts seem enthusiastic about the Lotus announcement and its potential effect on the evolving IT architecture. "The impact [of eSuite] is its ability to embed functionality into Web applications," says Andrew Diamondstein, a research associate at Giga Information Group in Cambridge, Mass.

Also, Lotus gets points for being the first out of the chute with Java-based Web applications. Amy Wohl, president of consulting firm Wohl Associates in Narberth, Pa., points out that Lotus is helped considerably by the clout of its parent. "IBM's place in the NC market is going to be major," says Wohl. That means Lotus can leverage IBM's growing market influence. "It's a nice combination for them," she adds.

Lotus' target audience for eSuite is network computer users, or those who have limited access to PCs, says Michele Hagan, general manager of eSuite Development at Lotus. But Lotus strongly believes that eSuite will have an impact in the PC mar ket as well.

"We're coming in the back door," says Hagan. "We're starting with the NC." Hagan stressed the importance of file compatibility between eSuite and PC applications, particularly Lotus' application suite, SmartSuite, which will be worked on during the first half of next year.

With eSuite, Lotus may face the possibility of cannibalizing the market for SmartSuite, something company officials are a bit vague about. "The traditional suite market continues to grow and remains unchanged," says Hagan. At the eSuite introduction, Papows stated that "Lotus is not abandoning its traditional business suite. It's a $4 billion market and is expected to grow to $6 billion by the end of the decade."

Papows does foresee some cannibalization of the suite market, he said. But will Lotus be the big loser? Maybe not. "Microsoft is obviously the [suite] share winner," Papows added. "They have a lot more to lose than we do."

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