Intel, Sun Expected to Announce Deal

Sun Microsystems and Intel have scheduled a joint news conference for Jan. 22 that will likely confirm a new agreement between the two companies that will place Xeon processors in Sun’s x86 servers.

The announcement comes on the heels of several published reports, including in the Wall Street Journal and Reuters, that Sun will expand its lineup to include Intel chips. It’s not clear if Sun will use Intel’s dual-core “Woodcrest” Xeon processors, the quad-core “Clovertown” processors or a combination of both.

An Intel spokesperson said the company would not “speculate” on the published reports. Sun CEO Jonathan Schwartz and Intel CEO Paul Otellini are scheduled to speak together at the event.

A source with knowledge of the announcement later confirmed the validity of the original Wall Street Journal story to eWEEK.

After turning away from Intel processors, Sun has used Advanced Micro Devices’ Opteron processors in its x86 server line. With the Jan. 22 pending announcement, Sun will join its larger competitors—Hewlett-Packard, Dell and IBM—as major IT companies that offer both AMD- and Intel-based systems.

While Sun has used AMD’s processors exclusively for the past few years, it never fully closed the door on the possibility of using Intel in some of its x86 server products.

Read the full story on eWEEK.com: Intel, Sun Expected to Announce Deal