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Citrix Demonstrates First Integrated Windows-Based Branch Office Application Delivery Solution

Posted on: Tuesday, 23 October 2007, 12:01 CDT

Today at Citrix iForum™, the world's largest application delivery conference, Citrix Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq:CTXS) demonstrated a new Windows-based branch office solution developed in partnership with Microsoft. The live demonstration in the iForum Tech Lab will highlight advanced, first-of-its-kind technology marrying industry-leading application acceleration from Citrix with Windows-based networking and application services from Microsoft. This new integrated solution, based on Citrix WANScaler™, Microsoft Windows Server 2003 and Microsoft Internet Security and Acceleration (ISA) Server, is designed to make applications faster and more secure for workers in branch offices, reduce branch office infrastructure costs and simplify IT administration. This collaboration, first announced last year, builds on an already extensive partnership between the two market leaders.

The branch office is a key point of convergence for end-to-end application delivery infrastructures. More than 50 percent of enterprise employees access mission-critical business applications while working outside of a corporate headquarters location according to independent market research. Delivery of applications over long-distance wide area networks (WANs), often on low bandwidth links, can significantly degrade application performance, lowering productivity for large numbers of employees. Applications that work well for headquarters-based staff with high-speed local area network (LAN) connections often fail when delivered to branch office workers over high-latency WANs.

While traditional WAN Optimization products address the delivery of applications over long distances, they fail to incorporate intelligence on the types of applications and how they are used. Citrix and Microsoft are addressing these challenges for enterprises by combining Microsoft's market-leading core edge and server technologies and Citrix's popular application acceleration and WAN optimization products. The joint solution will enable customers to realize immediate cost savings and enhanced information-worker productivity in the branch, while uniquely enabling them to take advantage of the familiarity and manageability of Windows Server, which is already a core component of many customers' infrastructure.

"Lowering IT costs through data center consolidation is an enterprise IT imperative for many customers," said Mike Schutz, director of product management for Windows Server networking and Forefront security at Microsoft Corp. "While removing IT infrastructure from the branch is often initially perceived as a silver bullet, organizations are quickly realizing that many core services, a majority of them Windows-based, must remain resident in the branch office to ensure optimal application performance and availability for remote users. To meet these challenges, we are working with Citrix to deliver a WAN Optimization solution that integrates Windows-based branch office services and leverages our existing management tools to provide a seamless management and end-user experience from the datacenter to the desktop."

"As data centers consolidate and users become increasingly mobile, there are two emerging needs in the branch office -- enhancing end-user productivity and lowering the total cost of ownership," said Sanjay Uppal, vice president of product marketing, Application Networking Group, Citrix Systems. "Microsoft is a long-time strategic partner with whom we are working to develop a complete solution fulfilling these needs. Integrating ubiquitous Microsoft software solutions with Citrix's proven WAN optimization capabilities drives greater application performance, faster data transfers and a better user experience."

Branch Office IT Strategies Discussion at iForum

Forrester Research will join Microsoft and Citrix to discuss emerging branch office strategies in an iForum sub-keynote session titled "Simplifying Branch Office Application Delivery." Session speakers will include Rob Whiteley, senior analyst at Forrester Research; Mike Schutz of Microsoft; and Sanjay Uppal of Citrix. This session is scheduled to take place from 10:30 a.m. to 11:20 a.m. PT on Tuesday, Oct. 23 in the Mandalay A and B ballrooms at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas, and will be repeated from 11:30 a.m. to 12:20 p.m. PT.

Pricing and Availability

The Citrix branch office solution will be available the first half of 2008.

About iForum 07 - The App Delivery Expo

Now in its tenth year, the Citrix App Delivery Expo is the industry's largest conference focused entirely on application delivery infrastructure, bringing together thousands of business leaders, IT managers and technology leaders from around the world. Application delivery infrastructure best practices will be highlighted in more than 60 sessions, including keynotes and general sessions from analysts at Gartner, Forrester, IDC and Yankee Group, as well as industry leaders like Accenture, Dell, Microsoft, HP, IBM, Intel, Oracle and SAP. The conference also features 15 enterprise customer presentations, vendor exhibits, technology labs, hands-on technical workshops, panel discussions, and product demonstrations. The event will present thought leaders and cutting-edge technology behind some of the hottest trends in the market, including virtualization, desktop delivery and application networking. Held at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, NV, from October 22-25, 2007, the Citrix App Delivery Expo will also feature keynotes by Citrix executives including Mark Templeton, president and CEO. More information is available at http://www.citrixiforum.com.

About Citrix

Citrix Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq:CTXS) is the global leader and the most trusted name in application delivery infrastructure. More than 200,000 organizations worldwide rely on Citrix to deliver any application to users anywhere with the best performance, highest security and lowest cost. Citrix customers include 100% of the Fortune 100 companies and 99% of the Fortune Global 500, as well as hundreds of thousands of small businesses and prosumers. Citrix has approximately 6,200 channel and alliance partners in more than 100 countries. Annual revenue in 2006 was $1.1 billion.

For Citrix Investors

This release contains forward-looking statements which are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The forward-looking statements in this release do not constitute guarantees of future performance. Those statements involve a number of factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, including risks associated with revenue growth and recognition of revenue, products, their development and distribution, product demand and pipeline, economic and competitive factors, the Company's key strategic relationships, acquisition and related integration risks as well as other risks detailed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Citrix assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking information contained in this press release or with respect to the announcements described herein.

Citrix®, Citrix iForum™ and Citrix WANScaler™ are trademarks of Citrix Systems, Inc. and/or one or more of its subsidiaries, and may be registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and in other countries. All other trademarks and registered trademarks are property of their respective owners.

Source: Business Wire

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