Sophos today announced that it would make its Sophos
Anti-Virus product available to corporate users of IBM Anti-Virus
free of charge.
The announcement comes in the wake of news that IBM is leaving
the Anti-Virus market and is handing all its customers over to
Symantec as part of a technology deal. The free offer from Sophos
allows IBM customers the option to switch over to Sophos today. The
offer is valid to the end of users' existing IBM contracts.
"We don't believe that the IBM/Symantec deal is in the best
interests of consumers," said Jan Hruska, technical director at
Sophos. "Symantec's product range is designed around protecting
single PCs, which is a very different task from protecting a
corporate network. Sophos Anti-Virus has been designed from the
ground up as a network solution. Our unique Client/Server
architecture provides unparalleled advantages for the corporate
user. IBM customers are likely to be these same corporate
users."
Under the IBM/Symantec deal, development of IBM Anti-Virus
ceases immediately and support for the product runs until the end
of the year, by which time all IBM Anti-Virus users must change to
a new anti-virus tool. Unlike Symantec, Sophos Anti-Virus provides
full support for all platforms currently covered by IBM
Anti-Virus.
Corporate IBM customers should contact Sophos today to receive
fully functional evaluation copies of Sophos Anti-Virus and expert
advice to help with the transition.
A free ninety day evaluation of Sophos Anti-Virus is already
available to any company wishing to evaluate the software.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.