IBM Hong Kong Software Group announced Thursday in Hong Kong that support for open standard is a key element of its strategy this year.

"The open standard is essential for the next generation of e-business development and for managing the complexity of dynamic e-business," said the group's executive Ernie Hu.

Hu Highlighted the Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) and Linux among numerous open standards.

Lotus, one of the four software brands of the group, will build its next-generation collaborative products based on J2EE to better integrate with web services environments.

IBM has the industry's largest portfolio of middleware, comprised of WebSphere, Data Management, Lotus and Tivoli ported to the Linux platform, according to Hu.

This is being matched by IBM's ISV (Independent Software Vendor) partners with a rapidly growing portfolio of Linux-based business applications, he added.

"Leveraging Linux and partners to create a compelling value proposition for small-to-medium enterprises is something that IBM is focusing on worldwide," said Hu.

(Xinhua News Agency March 14, 2002)