z@cca.UUCP (Steve Zimmerman) (05/10/84)
The EMACS group at CCA has been spun off to form its own company, known
as CCA Uniworks. The birth of CCA Uniworks was announced in a front
page article in this week's (May 7) Computerworld. Here is the text of
the press release that formally announced CCA Uniworks:
CROWNTEK INC. AND COMPUTER CORPORATION OF AMERICA FORM CCA UNIWORKS INC.
TO DEVELOP SOFTWARE FOR UNIX MARKETPLACE
First product, CCA EMACS, Challenges Existing Performance
Standards for Text Editing and Programming Applications
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 1-- Crowntek Inc. and Computer Corporation of
America (CCA) today announced the formation of CCA Uniworks Inc., a CCA
spinoff company that will develop and market a family of application
software products for UNIX-based systems in both micro and minicomputer
environments.
Established as an independent corporate entity, CCA Uniworks will
focus on product development and marketing to capitalize on the growing
acceptance of the UNIX operating system in scientific and commercial
markets.
The new venture will be headed by James Norgaard, who will serve as
vice president and general manager. Norgaard has held several sales
management and marketing positions at CCA, most recently serving as
director of management information. At CCA Uniworks, he will oversee
product development, market direction, and financial planning.
Building on an Established Product Base
CCA Uniwork's first product will be CCA EMACS, an established
product that was introduced by CCA last September. CCA EMACS boasts the
greatest combination of power, speed, and functionality of any text
editor for UNIX-based systems. Its high level of performance gives CCA
Uniworks a solid entry into the UNIX marketplace and a strong base upon
which to develop additional software products for UNIX-based systems.
Product Philosophy: Address the User
Since its introduction by Bell Laboratories in 1969, UNIX has made
its biggest inroads in engineering, research and scientific markets.
UNIX watchers at the Yankee Group, a computer market research firm,
predict that UNIX's biggest growth will come in the area of commercial
applications for business.
"Software developers are just now gearing up to address users'
needs for applications and vertical market software," says Norgaard.
"In the next two years, the industry will see a proliferation of new
application software for UNIX-based systems."
CCA Uniworks will serve both the scientific and business markets,
Norgaard notes, but will concentrate the bulk of its efforts in
developing software packages that address the needs of the novice user
in the office environment. "UNIX is not very accessible to the
non-technical person," he adds. "Beginning with CCA EMACS, we'll
develop end-user documentation and tutorials that will let users get
into our products quickly, using easy-to-understand terms. At the same
time, we'll provide direction for anyone who wants to utilize the full
depth of the product offering."
CCA EMACS is currently being sold through OEM channels, as well as
through direct mail to end users. According to Norgaard, CCA Uniworks
will seek to form marketing agreements with other companies developing
UNIX-based software products. There are currently no plans to sell CCA
EMACS directly to end users.
Creating an Entrepreneurial Environment with Own Product Focus
"The trend in business seems to be that small is better," says
Norgaard. "By forming CCA Uniworks, Crowntek and CCA have created an
entrepreneurial environment that will foster many new product
developments for the UNIX marketplace. With complete autonomy over
business strategy, we'll have the freedom to execute ideas quickly.
This will allow us to compete more effectively and take advantage of
market opportunities as they emerge."
"The development of CCA EMACS provided CCA with a window into the
world of UNIX, and the opportunities seen there led us to form CCA
Uniworks," according to CCA executive vice president Jim Rothnie. "We
feel that a spinoff company, with its own marketing focus, is the
fastest way to become a leader in the UNIX software market.
"CCA EMACS is and extraordinary product," Rothnie adds. "Under the
guidance of CCA Uniworks, we expect it to become the UNIX standard for
text and program editing."
EMACS to be Ported to IBM PC
Norgaard said that CCA Uniworks will port CCA EMACS down to the
PC-DOS operating system, which will allow it to run on the IBM Personal
Computer, as well as the numerous look-alikes now on the market. "The
size of the IBM PC market is difficult to ignore," says Norgaard.
"CCA EMACS would give IBM PC users and editing and program tool of
incomparable power. Our main focus, however, will be the UNIX market."
Crowntek Inc. is an integrated information services company
headquartered in Toronto with subsidiaries delivering a full range of
information technology products. CCA recently became a Crowntek
subsidiary.
Founded in 1965, Computer Corporation of America is a $22 million
software company growing more than 60 percent per year with headquarters
in Cambridge, Mass. The firm emphasizes the development, marketing, and
support of commercial software for database management and programmer
productivity. Today it also announced new software products for the
information center and automated office. Computer Corporation of
America has more than 400 customers served by 15 U.S. offices and eight
international affiliates.
UNIX is a trademark of Bell Laboratories.
IBM and PC-DOS are registered trademarks of IBM Corporation.