IBM links SMEs to online exchanges

IBM has unveiled its iSeries Connect software, which is intended to enable small and medium sized businesses to participate in global e-marketplaces.

The pre-packaged offering provides users of its eServer iSeries products, formerly known as the AS/400, with an integration framework to help them link their applications with those of trading partners, either directly or through an e-marketplace such as Ariba.

Drew Flaada, IBM's director of eServer product management, said: "The benefit to the customer is to literally automate and eliminate the need for integration by providing a connector scheme. It's close to a plug and go operation."

"It provides the functionality to pull the product data from a back-end database and put it into a format that's readily available on ecommerce networks," he added.

iSeries Connect is based on Big Blue's MQSeries messaging middleware, which enables users to connect their front- and back-end applications running on multiple servers, including WebSphere and Domino. It supports Java and XML, and the package includes various tools and catalogue functions.

The initial release can hook into Ariba-based exchanges, but IBM is also developing connectors to other portals such as CommerceOne.