Apple commmits to license Mac OS for PowerPC, Intel
Opens up proprietary OS in bid to dethrone Microsoft
BY TOM QUINLAN
NEW YORK - Apple Computer Inc. is finally throwing open the gates to its kingdom, promising for the first time to license the Macintosh operating system to other vendors for both the PowerPC and Intel x86 systems, an Apple official said here last week.
The move, which comes less than a week after Apple representatives said the company was undecided about licensing the System 7 operating system to other manufacturers, ends 16 years of Apple maintaining a proprietary architecture. "We still have to make a lot of decisions about how to implement this, but we recognize that we have to license System 7 if we truly want to be more of a software company," said Rick Spitz, vice president of Macintosh system software. Apple's speed in committing itself to becoming an open software company can be attributed to the ascension of Michael Spindler to CEO last month, sources said. "John Sculley recognized that this was necessary, but he really didn't want to deal with restructuring Apple's business model one more time," one source said. "Without Spindler, this decision probably wouldn't have been made now."
Apple's move toward becoming an operating systems company will change the complexion of future buying decisions, analysts said.
"This means that within two to three years, the Intel-Microsoft model won't completely dominate the market," said Aaron Goldberg, CEO of Santa Clara, Calif.-based InfoCorp. "With System 7, the PowerPC will have about 30 percent of the market in that time."
Although Apple is using the PowerPC to break with tradition - Apple's systems and a version of System 7 developed for the PowerPC will be available early in 1994 - it will openly challenge Microsoft Corp. for the Intel-based market, as well.
"We see the PowerPC as the more significant of the two markets," Spitz said, "but bringing out a version of System 7 for x86 will help expand our markets and better establish us as an open systems company."
Apple has not decided how it will implement its OS on different platforms and license the technology to others, Spitz said. For the x86 version of System 7, Apple will probably license the OS to hardware manufacturers and offer it as a standalone retail product, Spitz said.
For the PowerPC, Apple is likely to be more cautious, sources said, and ally itself with top-tier PC manufacturers and a select handful of third-party Mac peripheral vendors.
Apple has talked to a number of those vendors in an effort to gauge interest and determine how the PowerPC clone business would emerge, Spitz said.
Apple already granted IBM and Groupe Bull licenses to run Mac applications in the Unix-based PowerOpen architecture.
