October 2, 2000 - National Semiconductor Corporation (NYSE:NSM) today showcased an array of next-generation thin clients based on the National® Geode™ technology from the world's leading thin client makers at Citrix iForum™ 2000™ (Booth#: 57, Orlando, FL., Oct. 2-5). These thin clients will improve reliability and data security, and reduce ownership cost for enterprises' computing needs. The world leader in thin client technology, National Semiconductor has benefited from its own deployment of thin client systems, bringing the total cost of ownership (TCO) down to one fourth of the industry average.
Thin clients have increasingly become an alternative for personal computers in enterprise computing. Citrix iForum 2000 is Citrix Systems' annual user conference where leading device manufacturers, application service providers (ASPs), Internet and security vendors gather to explore best solutions for server-based enterprise computing.
The next-generation thin clients displayed at National's booth are from Boundless, Compaq, DT Research, IBM, Maxspeed, Netier Technologies, Neoware, TeleVideo, and Wyse Technologies. With National's Geode processor as the engine, customers enjoy greatly improved performance, reduced system cost, and lower overall power consumption.
"National's participation as a Platinum sponsor of Citrix iForum is two-fold: To share National's own success story on thin client deployment with organizations looking for the best return on their IT investments; and to demonstrate what our industry-leading thin client technology can do to address all the issues in server-based computing," said Klaus Preussner, Director of Information Services at National Semiconductor. "National is well positioned to further grow the thin client market. Moving forward, we also believe wireless initiatives, the ASP market, Windows 2000, among others, are potential market accelerators."
A thin client is an information access device designed to utilize a server for computing tasks. Unlike a PC, a thin client is simple and easy-to-use; requires almost no maintenance, software upgrades and configuration; is less vulnerable to computer viruses, crashes and downtime; and ensures data security, because all the processing of applications is done on a centralized server. Companies with departments that use highly standardized computing tasks, like sales or service call centers, data entry departments, or technical support desks, can realize significant cost savings from thin client deployment.
Server-Based Computing Reduces Cost, Increases Efficiency
Since its own deployment of thin clients in a Citrix application server computing system, National has seen its TCO reduced from $7,773 per desktop in 1997 to $3,100 per desktop in 1999 which is one fourth of the industry average, resulting in savings of $30 million a year.
Through server-based computing, National has been able to:
- Reduce application development and deployment cycle time of business-critical applications worldwide from months to days and hours. This is achieved through seamless access to centralized servers;
- Increase accessibility of PC desktop applications (All 7000+ knowledge workers can access their "desktop" from any thin client/PC in the company.);
- Web-enable all legacy client/server and mainframe applications through a thin client portal.
"National Semiconductor is a textbook example of the business benefits - including cost savings, greater application reach and faster deployment - that can be achieved by implementing thin clients in a Citrix application server computing system," said David Weiss, vice president of marketing for Citrix. "As a Platinum-level sponsor of our iForum 2000 conference, National can provide attendees with invaluable insight into the server-based computing model, both as a successful user and as a leader in thin-client enabling technology."
In a recent survey by IDC, a leading analyst firm, companies adopt the thin client technology for improvement of IT management practices, reduction of desktop complexity, centralized control, ease of management, and TCO reduction, among others.
"As the system solution vendor of choice to the thin client market, National has been working with technology and market leaders to deliver innovative thin client solutions tailored to enterprises of difference sizes," said Ziv Azmanov, director of thin client business unit at National. "We are leveraging our leadership position to expand thin client computing to new markets and emerging applications."
National dominates the thin client technology market with nearly 80 percent of the market share. IDC predicts the thin client market will exceed 9.5 million units by 2004. The largest percentage of those shipments will be Web-based terminals.
Innovation Drives Thin Clients to Next Level
National last month introduced the Geode SC2200 processor, a thin client-on-a-chip solution that enables customers to lower overall system cost and speed time-to-market by simplifying design, while reducing component count, main system board size and power consumption. Making thin client systems smaller, more reliable, cost-effective and more power efficient, this new solution is ideal for a wide range of vertical markets in enterprises, government, education, healthcare, retail, and financial industries.
About National Semiconductor
National Semiconductor provides system-on-a-chip solutions for the information age. Combining real-world analog and state-of the-art digital technology, the company's chips lead many sectors of the personal computer, communications, and consumer markets. With headquarters in Santa Clara, California, National reported sales of $2.1 billion for its last fiscal year and has about 10,500 employees worldwide. Additional company and product information is available on the World Wide Web at www.national.com. For more details on information appliances, see IA.NATIONAL.COM.
