PC clone innovator Stephen Kahng is first to announce Macintosh software license with Apple Computer; Olivetti-backed start-up vows price-competitive Macintosh systems to broaden mainstream market.MILPITAS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 28, 1994--A license agreement with Apple Computer Inc. for rights to build systems using its world-renowned Macintosh operating system (operating system) Macintosh Operating System - (Mac OS) Apple Computer, Inc.'s proprietary operating system for their Macintosh family of personal computers. The part of the operating system that simulates the desktop is called "Finder. was announced Wednesday by PC clone A PC that is not made by one of the major PC vendors. Years ago, it meant any PC not made by IBM. See white box and PC compatible. luminary Stephen Kahng's new company -- Power Computing Not to be confused with the extant computer hardware company also called Power Computing. Power Computing was a short-lived manufacturer of Apple Macintosh-compatible computers. Corp. Power Computing is the first company to announce a Mac OS licensing agreement and plans for developing systems that run the Mac OS. Power Computing will operate as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) The rebranding of equipment and selling it. The term initially referred to the company that made the products (the "original" manufacturer), but eventually became widely used to refer to the organization that buys the products and ) of logic boards and complete systems, and also market its own branded systems. Power Computing engineers have been working for many months to prototype system designs that run the Mac OS. Power Computing plans to market Mac OS-based systems in the spring of 1995, and has several OEM agreements pending with product shipments expected by mid-year. "We are bringing years of expertise in standard, component-based design and manufacturing to the industry so that the many benefits of the Mac OS can be enjoyed by even more people worldwide," said Stephen Kahng, president and chief executive officer of Power Computing. "We will maintain a very aggressive entry-level price point for our systems through innovative design, manufacturing and distribution strategies. In addition, we will reach out to specific market segments with configured con·fig·ure tr.v. con·fig·ured, con·fig·ur·ing, con·fig·ures To design, arrange, set up, or shape with a view to specific applications or uses: Mac OS-compatible systems, and penetrate burgeoning regions worldwide." "We are very pleased to be working with Power Computing as a Mac OS licensee licensee n. a person given a license by government or under private agreement. (See: license, licensor) LICENSEE. One to whom a license has been given. 1 M. Q. & S. 699 n. ," said Don Strickland, vice president of Mac OS licensing for Apple. "By virtue of being and OEM supplier of logic boards and systems, Power Computing has the opportunity to play an important role in assisting other licensees to bring value-added products to market quickly and cost effectively." Olivetti and Enzo Torresi play key roles Founded in November 1993, Power Computing's largest outside shareholder is Ing. C. Olivetti & C. Spa Olivetti & C. SpA Historic Italian electronics and telecommunications company. Founded in 1908 by Camillo Olivetti (1868–1943), the firm began by making typewriters. Camillo's son Adriano studied manufacturing and plant management in the U.S. of Italy. Olivetti Vice Chairman Elserino Piol is on the company's board, along with computer networking
Computer networking is the engineering discipline concerned with communication between computer systems or devices. and distribution pioneer Enzo Torresi, who serves as chairman. Power Computing President Stephen Kahng is credited by many in the personal computer industry as the innovator of low-cost, component-based PC design and as a catalyst for the explosion of cost-competitiveness in the PC clone industry of the mid-1980s. Most recently, Kahng worked as a consultant to several global PC vendors on design and business strategies for low cost PC systems. Prior to that he was senior vice president and general manager at Chips & Technologies, leading the company's innovative approach to commodity-based processor design for PC clone systems. His work at Chips & Technologies enabled dramatic price breaks and major innovations in how companies designed and manufactured personal computers. Before that Kahng's own former company -- Up to Date Technology -- designed the successful Leading Edge PC for the South Korean conglomerate conglomerate, in business conglomerate, corporation whose asset growth, often very rapid, comes largely through the acquisition of, or merger with, other firms whose products are largely unrelated to each other or to that of the parent company. Daewoo Corp. Availability Power Computing plans to begin shipping its first Mac OS-compatible systems, based on the Power PC microprocessor, in the spring of 1995. Prototypes of Power Computing systems will be demonstrated to select groups at the MacWorld Expo, Jan. 4-7, 1995 in San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden . Further information on Power Computing products and OEM plans will be announced in the spring. CONTACT: Power Computing Corp.
Stephen Kahng, 408/526-0500
Stirling & Cohan
Brooke Cohan, 415/513-0973
Regis McKenna Inc.
Jeni Johnstone, 408/974-2589
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