> I can't imagine many people buying a million dollar mainframe just to run Linux.
The Techcrunch version of this story [1] has an interesting bit on the pricing model, suggesting that the up-front cost will be much lower than usual (but no specific numbers).
By offering an elastic, cloud-like pricing model, [IBM] is hoping to land more customers who might have been scared away previously by the up-front cost of investing in a mainframe. The metered mainframe will still sit inside the customer’s on-premises data center, but billing will be based on how much the customer uses the system, much like a cloud model, Mauri explained.
Of course it depends a lot on the specifics, since IBM does already bill in part based on usage. So this could be either a significant departure in pricing approach, or just marketing a tweak on it.
The Techcrunch version of this story [1] has an interesting bit on the pricing model, suggesting that the up-front cost will be much lower than usual (but no specific numbers).
By offering an elastic, cloud-like pricing model, [IBM] is hoping to land more customers who might have been scared away previously by the up-front cost of investing in a mainframe. The metered mainframe will still sit inside the customer’s on-premises data center, but billing will be based on how much the customer uses the system, much like a cloud model, Mauri explained.
Of course it depends a lot on the specifics, since IBM does already bill in part based on usage. So this could be either a significant departure in pricing approach, or just marketing a tweak on it.
[1] http://techcrunch.com/2015/08/16/ibm-teams-with-canonical-on...