StarQuest to Utilize Merrill Lynch Technology to Enhance
New Product in Development
SOMERSET, N.J., and BERKELEY, Calif., Oct. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Merrill
Lynch and StarQuest Software, Inc., a leading provider of interoperability
solutions for IBM enterprise customers, announced today it has signed a
license, development and royalty agreement in which Merrill Lynch will provide
technology and related patents to StarQuest for its development.
StarQuest will utilize Merrill Lynch's source code, named TGADP (Trusted
Global Advisor Data Provider), to modify and enhance its StarQuest Application
Server (SQAS) product. TGADP, which enables the invocation of programs in a
Customer Information Control System (CICS) transaction processing system on a
remote computer as if they were stored procedure on a database management
system, provides connectivity between Open Database Connectivity
(ODBC)-enabled applications on NT servers and CICS transactions on mainframes.
Using the StarQuest ODBC driver StarSQL, customers will gain access to CICS
and DB2 databases with a single, high performance middleware solution.
"IBM's CICS is the most widely used transaction processing system in the
world today," said Howard Sorgen, senior vice president and chief technology
officer for Merrill's U.S. Private Client Group. "We are looking forward to
working with StarQuest to develop this new product and provide users the
value-added benefit of being able to extend applications, increase speed and
reduce the complexities of transaction processing."
Currently scheduled for release at the end of the year, SQAS will enhance
CICS access of the Cisco Transaction Connection (CTRC) solution. CTRC, a
cost-effective software and router-based solution which provides TCP/IP end
users and servers with access to CICS and DB2, replaces expensive and
hard-to-manage UNIX and NT gateways and proprietary host software. A feature
of the Cisco IOS(R) software, CTRC connects Windows and UNIX applications
directly to host data. Jointly developed by Cisco Systems and StarQuest
Software, CTRC also includes a site license of the StarQuest StarSQL
Enterprise Edition client at no additional charge.
"The cutting-edge Merrill Lynch technology we are licensing and modifying
will greatly enhance our component of the Cisco end-to-end solution," states
StarQuest president Paul Rampel. "This licensing agreement provides the
technical foundation of the relationship between Merrill Lynch and StarQuest
Software that we intend to build upon. StarQuest has always been recognized
for its connectivity expertise and now we can extend it to help change the
face of transaction processing."
About Merrill Lynch
Merrill Lynch is one of the world's leading financial management and
advisory companies with offices in 43 countries and total client assets
exceeding $1.5 trillion. The firm is the top global underwriter and market
maker of debt and equity securities and a leading strategic advisor to
corporations, governments, institutions, and individuals worldwide. Through
Merrill Lynch Asset Management and Mercury Asset Management, wholly owned
subsidiaries, the company is one of the world's largest managers of financial
assets. Merrill Lynch's Web offerings currently include askmerrill.com, which
showcases the firm's global research capabilities, and Merrill Lynch OnLine, a
financial resource site for clients and the investing public. For more
information, visit Merrill Lynch at http://www.ml.com.
About StarQuest Software
Headquartered in Berkeley, California, StarQuest Software, Inc. provides
interoperability solutions for IBM enterprise customers. StarQuest develops
and markets software products for seamlessly connecting Windows and UNIX
systems to DB2 data on mainframe and midrange systems.
StarQuest has a strategic relationship with Cisco Systems. StarQuest and
Cisco jointly developed Cisco Transaction Connection. Microsoft and StarQuest
jointly developed the StarQuest Data Replicator. In addition, StarQuest is a
founding member of The Open Group's Database Interoperability Workgroup,
responsible for the adoption of DRDA as an industry standard for data access
interoperability.
The company is privately held. News and information are available at
http://www.starquest.com.
StarQuest, StarSQL, StarSQL Enterprise Edition, StarQuest Data Replicator
are trademarks of StarQuest Software, Inc. All other technology, product, and
company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.
SOURCE Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.ml.com
Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/555800.html or fax,
800-758-5804, ext. 555800
CONTACT:
Selena Morris of Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc.,
212-449-7283, smorris@exchange.ml.com; or Sally Slevin of
StarQuest Software, Inc., 510-982-2120, sally@starquest.com
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