MySQL Turns To Ingram Micro For Enterprise Support

MySQL, its attention focused increasingly on the enterprise market, says it will soon offer support subscriptions for its open-source database products.

Barbara Darrow, Contributor

April 19, 2005

2 Min Read
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MySQL plans to start making its enterprise support subscriptions available via Ingram Micro, executives of the database company told CRN on Tuesday.

The MySQL Network support options, which range from about $600 to $5,000 annually, have been offered direct since February.

"We've closed 400 deals in six weeks, and more than 75 percent of them are with new customers," said Marten Mickos, CEO of MySQL.

The goal now is to open up indirect channels, said Bertrand Matthelie, director of alliances at the Cupertino, Calif.-based company. "We want to raise the number of integrators and VARs reselling MySQL network to customers, he said.

The deal with Ingram Micro hasn't been announced, but both executives discussed it with CRN at MySQL's annual customer conference in Santa Clara, Calif.

Since last year, MySQL--which offers its database in commercial and open-source options--has tried to raise its profile in the channel. At the conference last year, the company unveiled its first formal VAR program.

On the product front, MySQK for the second year in a row talked up its still-unshipped MySQL 5.0 release, the second beta of which was made available on Monday. The update promises support for "big boy" database features such as triggers, views and stored procedures.

MySQL co-founders David Axmark and Michael "Monty" Widenius demonstrated the nascent code at the conference. The company pledged not to sacrifice the product's characteristic fast performance for more glitz.

PostgreSQL and MySQL vie for the hearts and minds of open-source-inclined database developers. PostgreSQL sports more enterprise features and perks but isn't known for its fast performance. MySQL brings performance in spades, according to attendees, and Mickos promised that performance will remain the company's "No. 1 priority."

"The risk is if we don't work carefully, we could hurt that. When we add features, we do so in a modular manner," Mickos said. "Low latency is where we are good, and that all radiates from Monty [Widenius]."

MySQL also demonstrated a new database migration tool that promises to help database administrators and users move data from competitive databases into MySQL. The graphical tool, now in beta, is available from MySQL's Web site and eases migrations from Oracle's database and Microsoft's Access database. Support for SQL Server, Sybase, IBM DB2 and Informix databases is planned. In a demo, a MySQL executive showed how users can highlight the schemas they wants to move and automate the migration process.

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