MEI and IBM sign statement of direction on OS/2 Warp cooperation

Ministry of Electronics Industry press release, 18 August 1995

Beijing, August 18, 1995... The Ministry of Electronics Industry (MEI) of the People's Republic of China and International Business Machines Corporation (IBM), today signed a Statement of Direction (SOD) to use OS/2 Warp.

In the building and implementation of China's information infrastructure there is a high level of importance placed on the establishment and specification of an open system environment, as well as the promotion of open computer networking standards and protocols. To achieve this objective, MEI has agreed to use IBM Corporation's OS/2 Warp software platform, in conjunction with Lotus Notes groupware. Utilizing the OS/2 Warp platform extends the current cooperative efforts to establish and implement specifications for the Chinese computing platform standards. Through this effort, the vast number of Chinese computer users will be able to choose among various software platforms, strengthening the vitality and accelerating the development of China's computer information industry.

The Statement of Agreement assures MEI's endorsement of OS/2 Warp as a preferred product. Recommending IBM's operating system provides Chinese users with alternatives among various software platforms. The Special Committee on Chinese computing platform standards will promptly establish an OS/2 team and a Lotus Notes team. The Committee will also invite IBM and its affiliated company, Lotus, to act as correspondent members. The Special Committee on Chinese Computing Platforms will recommend character fonts, character style and input methods which are consistent with Chinese standards to expedite the standardization of OS/2 Warp and Lotus Notes.

Because China is in the process of defining cross-platform open Chinese API (Application Programming Interface) standards, MEI will invite IBM to participate in this task. IBM commits to actively cooperate with appropriate Chinese organizations to research and assist in defining cross-platform Chinese computing standards and specifications as well as Chinese API standards.

IBM will also set up training centers for OS/2 Warp in universities and relevant software companies in China.

This is the first time that the Ministry has officially endorsed a specific product for computer use, and it represents the first time that the Ministry has invited a foreign company to join the special committee on China's computing platform.