IBM has cut US prices on software for its most worrysome underachiever, the 9370 distributed processor. Details of the cuts were still not available when we closed for press, but analysts Sierra Group, Tempe, Arizona, reckon that they could yield savings of up to 47% in some configurations, and for the first time, the cost-of-ownership of the 9370 is now down at the same level as for System 36 and 38 when 50 users are supported: in one case the group studied, savings were as high as $75,000 for a single system. Overall they range from 2% for a 100-user configuration to 14% for 50-user systems, and measured over five years, the software cuts meant a cost decline of from 2% to 14%. Nevertheless, says the group, prices for high-end VAX systems from DEC still undercut the 9370s, although IBM is now closer in line with Data General and Hewlett-Packard in several configurations. IBM is expected to cut 9370 hardware prices to come closer in line.
