Telecommunications is the one area where there are few arguments about Unix, and in general, adherence to AT&T Co standards and a lack of any interest in the Open Software Foundation are the rule – because of their parentage, the US Bell Operating Companies are true blue AT&T Unix users, so that most telecommunicati ons and telephone applications are written to the AT&T standard. So it comes as no surprise that British Telecommunications Plc is happy to give one of its first large chunks of Unix business to ICL for its new DRS 6000 Series Sparc-based mach ines, which run System V.4. Telecom is paying UKP2m for 12 DRS 6000 Level 50 for use in its 10 Network Admini stration Centres dotted around the UK, where they will be used to supp ort the new intemised billing pro gramme. They will enhance the Dis trict Data Collectors, which store and pass data from digital exchanges to the billing and other computers.
