Impress Subsidizes ThinkIT and Launches the Enterprise System Selection Portal Site "ThinkIT" for the Open-Source Era
- Comparative Assessment Activities for Enterprise Software -
TOKYO, Japan --Aug. 10, 2004- Impress Corporation (TSE: 9479) today announced the launch of the portal site "ThinkIT" (http://www.thinkit.co.jp/) to aid in the selection of enterprise systems in the open-source era, through the subsidization of the open-source system integration service company ThinkIT Corporation (hereinafter referred to as "ThinkIT").
The advent of open-source technology (*1) has diversified IT solutions for public organizations and private firms, as well as for national and local governmental agencies in Japan. ThinkIT, a membership-free Web media, serves as a great time- and effort-saver for system engineers and IT managers. ThinkIT distributes information on the comparative assessment of various IT solutions, focusing on the differences between open-source software (OSS) and commercial software. In addition, ThinkIT will provide businesses with useful tips for finding optimal solutions.
To distribute comparative-assessment information on software, ThinkIT creates a standard for software comparative assessment and develops framework software to test software performance through collaboration with NPOs such as the Japan Open Source Advocacy Organization (*2), other organizations in related industries, major vendors, and open-source communities. ThinkIT makes the source code of its developed software available in an open-source format in order to allow end users and communities to join in the development.
ThinkIT not only provides technical information on IT solutions, but also distributes software assessment tools via its website. In addition, it conducts user-oriented media activities by determining usersf software requirements and feeding them back to software vendors and open-source communities.
Through these activities, Impress and ThinkIT enhance the diversity of IT solutions, thus contributing to the development of the software industry in Japan.
[Comment from Toru Matsuura, CEO, Red Hat, Inc.]
Red Hat sincerely welcomes the introduction of ThinkIT. As a distributor of Linux, Red Hat has contributed to the development of open-source software. Red Hat hopes that the activities of ThinkIT help deepen usersf understanding of open-source software, increase developers' motivation and, as a result, lead to the improved development and production of useful open-source software.
- Outline of "ThinkIT," an enterprise-system selection portal site for the open-source era
(1) Name: ThinkIT
(2) URL: http://www.thinkit.co.jp/
(3) Scheduled pre-opening date: August 5, 2004
Scheduled official opening date: September 2004
Start date for software comparative assessment: October 2004
- Outline of ThinkIT Corporation (as of August 10, 2004)
ThinkIT Corporation was founded to organize information and knowledge for the utilization of diverse IT solutions promoted by open-source technologies, and to provide opportunities to develop various useful technologies.
(1) Company name: ThinkIT Corporation
(2) Representative: Naoki Shigematsu
(3) Location: 20 Sanbancho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
(4) Established: April 21, 2004
(5) Major business lines: Providing information services via the Internet and computer systems; conducting surveys, research, planning, design, development, and consulting concerning the Internet and computer systems
(6) Closing date: March 31
(7) Paid-in capital: 1,000,000 yen
(*Special treatment under the Law for Facilitating the Creation of New Business is applied to ThinkIT Corporation.)
(8) Number of shares outstanding: 20
- Outline of subsidizing
(1) Number of shares acquired, purchase price, and shareholdings before and after acquisition
Shares held prior to subsidizing: 0 (0% stake)
Number of shares acquired: 600 (purchase price: 30,000,000 yen)
Shares held after subsidizing: 600 (89.55% stake)
(2) Schedule
Scheduled date of acquisition: August 26, 2004
Masanobu Iseri was appointed to the board of directors of ThinkIT Corporation on July 29. The subsidizing had little impact on the consolidated operating results.
