Come 'n' Get It! Free UNIX Stampede Rolls On.

SANTA CRUZ, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 8, 1996--The mania continues around Free UNIX licenses as SCO (NASDAQ:SCOC) today announced the quantity of Free SCO OpenServer licenses are far ahead of expectations since the company's original announcement during SCO Forum96 in August.

The company also announced two new programs -- the availability of Free SCO UnixWare licenses in January 1997, and low-cost, source code licenses for the SCO UnixWare operating system exclusively for universities and other educational institutions.

In the seven weeks since SCO Forum96, SCO has processed over 8,000 Free SCO OpenServer licenses, surpassing original expectations. The demographics of licensees indicate a large number of students and technical home users are taking advantage of this offer. To gauge the responses from licensees, SCO included a comment box in the on-line licensing form that have been filled with gushing remarks, like, "This is the most fantastic thing `any' UNIX vendor has ever offered!" and "At last, REAL UNIX becomes free!"

"We thought this over for quite some time and decided to just move forward, knowing that this bold move would have a positive impact in the industry," said Scott McGregor, SCO's senior vice president, Products. "To say we're pleased is an understatement. We wanted to get SCO OpenServer into the hands of students and home users who will experiment with it, develop on it, and bring a new level of interest to UNIX. Well, it's happening. Now we are solidifying our stewardship of UNIX by offering educational source code licenses and Free SCO UnixWare licenses. It's our belief that the thousands who acquire these licenses will benefit from better understanding the technology that laid the foundation for the Internet, Business Critical computing, and heterogeneous computing -- three of the most important computing models of today."

The sector seeing the most significant benefit from Free SCO OpenServer is the educational community. Mary Anne Saunders, Ed.D., Associate Professor and Director of the Center for International Training and Education at George Washington University, sees this offer to students as being vital to advancing the UNIX program and expanding the interest in the UNIX system.

"We have been a part of SCO's University Seeding Program for quite some time and have experienced a great demand for UNIX operators, but have been limited by class space, time and money," said Saunders. "Now with Free SCO OpenServer, our students can take the product home, freeing up lab time and allowing our classes to support more students, while accelerating their learning, and broadening the appeal and understanding of UNIX systems. And all of this at a price universities and educational institutions all over the world can afford. This is fantastic!"

According to Dr. Alexander J. Annala, Ph.D., Senior Research Fellow, at the University College London, "I applaud SCO's decision to make a commercial quality UNIX system and set of development tools available without charge to individuals and academic institutions. Traditionally, the gift of high technology products to academic institutions tends to foster creativity and innovation, often leading to new discoveries and rapid advances in technology. In line with this tradition, I anticipate Free SCO OpenServer will spark the imagination of our students, support the emergence of new technologies, and make a lasting contribution to the information infrastructure of our schools."

Free SCO UnixWare and Low-Cost Educational Source Code Licenses

With the announcement of Free SCO OpenServer licenses at SCO Forum96 in August, SCO also promised free licenses of SCO's enterprise-class operating system, SCO UnixWare. The promise will be delivered in January of 1997 as SCO will make free licenses available from its Web site. Licenses are available for educational and non-commercial use to be used for evaluation purposes or to set up a Web server.

In addition to the Free UnixWare product, SCO also plans to offer educational institutions low-cost, source code licenses for the SCO UnixWare operating system. This will provide a unique opportunity for computer science faculty and students to explore and better understand the internal operation and architecture of UNIX technology. The source code is restricted to educational institutions and is limited to uses directly related to teaching and degree granting programs. Eligible educational institutions can license the source product directly from SCO for $5,000. For more information please contact the SCO University Seeding Program by sending an email to [e-mail].

How Do I Get Free SCO OpenServer Today?

To register for a Free SCO OpenServer license and to order the media over the Web, go to: http://www3.sco.com/Products. Free SCO OpenServer is licensed for educational and non-commercial use for purposes of evaluating and better understanding the UNIX operating system. The license is free, and product media, if needed, costs $19.

About SCO

SCO is the world's leading supplier of UNIX server and host systems, and a leading provider of client-integration software that integrates Windows PCs and other clients with UNIX servers from all major vendors. SCO Business Critical Servers run the critical, day-to-day operations of large branch organizations in retail, finance, telecom, and government, as well as corporate departments and small to medium-sized businesses of every kind. SCO sells and supports its products through a worldwide network of distributors, resellers, systems integrators, and OEMs. For additional corporate and product information, see SCO's home page on the World Wide Web: http://www.sco.com. -0-

Note to Editors: SCO, The Santa Cruz Operation, the SCO logo, SCO OpenServer, and UnixWare are trademarks or registered trademarks of The Santa Cruz Operation, Inc. in the USA and other countries. UNIX is a registered trademark in the US and other countries, licensed exclusively through X/Open Company Limited. All other brand or product names are or may be trademarks of, and are used to identify products or services of, their respective owners.

CONTACT: SCO

Monika Laud, 408/427-7421

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