IBM and Docker Announce Strategic Partnership to Deliver Enterprise Applications in the Cloud and On Prem

ARMONK, N.Y. and AMSTERDAM, Dec. 4, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- DockerCon EU -- Today, IBM (NYSE: IBM) and Docker, Inc. announced a strategic partnership that enables enterprises to more efficiently, quickly and cost effectively build and run the next generation of applications on the IBM Cloud and on prem via the Docker open platform for distributed applications. Enterprises can use the combination of IBM and Docker to create and manage a new generation of portable distributed applications that are rapidly composed of discrete interoperable Docker containers, have a dynamic lifecycle, and can scale to run in concert anywhere from the developer's laptop to hundreds of hosts in the cloud.

As the first company to work with Docker to sell integrated solutions that include Docker Hub Enterprise (DHE), IBM will be a premier provider of Docker, Inc.'s flagship product for the enterprise market.  DHE provides enterprises with a turnkey solution for distributed applications that allows their developers to focus on creating differentiated services behind the firewall and assembling them together with the best content that they have selected from the 60,000+ Dockerized services available in the Docker Hub hosted repository. 

In partnering with IBM, the number one hybrid cloud provider according the Synergy Research*, the two companies can build on Docker's open platform including the new APIs to orchestrate applications from development through deployment. Companies will have a more efficient and effective way to build, ship and run Docker multi-container, multi-host applications in the cloud.  Additionally, this partnership will assist in increasing developer productivity and accelerate time to market for smarter applications, which are coupled with IBM's strong security and integration with key existing enterprise systems, including service management and DevOps.

"This partnership with IBM is a great win for the rapidly growing number of enterprises that see Docker as the foundation for a new generation of business critical distributed applications," said Ben Golub, CEO of Docker  "IBM's commitment to delivering enterprise-grade Docker native solutions will drive dynamic, new business initiatives for enterprises through portable, highly dynamic Docker-based applications."

IBM Improves Container Performance versus the Traditional Approach

As part of this partnership, IBM is also announcing the beta of IBM Containers that is a Docker-based container service that will include open Docker-native features and interfaces, including the new Docker orchestration services. Delivered as part of Bluemix, IBM's open cloud platform for application development, the IBM Containers service will enable enterprises to launch Docker containers directly onto the IBM Cloud on bare metal servers from SoftLayer, an IBM company. By leveraging Docker container technology, this will provide companies an environment that is simpler to manage and offers increased utilization and performance in a more flexible execution model, expanding the types of applications that can be supported on the IBM Cloud.

"As enterprises demand tools that allow them to develop applications in a consistent and easy manner, Docker containers have quickly become the de facto building block for doing so," said IBM Vice President of Open Technology and Cloud Performance Solutions Angel Diaz. "IBM Containers service running Docker containers on SoftLayer's bare metal servers provides improved performance over traditional approaches and this strategic partnership between IBM and Docker is the first of its kind to provide enterprises with integrated tools and services they need to automate application deployment across the public cloud and on-premise cloud centers."

IBM will bundle Docker Hub Enterprise with these integrated services as well as sell it as a standalone product offering.  IBM will be demonstrating its early integration with Docker at its booth at DockerCon EU.

About IBM Cloud Computing

IBM is the global leader in open enterprise cloud enabling secure data and infrastructure integration in the cloud. For more information about cloud offerings from IBM, visit http://www.ibm.com/cloud. Follow us on Twitter at @IBMcloud and on our blog at www.thoughtsoncloud.com. Join the conversation #ibmcloud.

About Docker, Inc.

Docker, Inc. is the company behind the Docker open source platform, and is the chief sponsor of the Docker ecosystem. Docker is an open platform for developers and system administrators to build, ship, run and orchestrate distributed applications. With Docker, IT organizations shrink application delivery from months to minutes, frictionlessly move workloads between data centers and the cloud, and improve infrastructure efficiency by 50 percent or more. Inspired by an active community and by transparent, open source innovation, Docker has been downloaded 57+ million times and is used by thousands of the world's most innovative organizations including eBay, Baidu, Yelp, Spotify, Yandex, and Cambridge HealthCare.

Docker, Inc. is venture backed by AME Cloud Ventures (Yahoo! Founder Jerry Yang), Benchmark (Peter Fenton), Greylock Partners (Jerry Chen), Insight Venture Partners (Jerry Murdock), Sequoia Capital (Bill Coughran), SV Angel (Ron Conway), Trinity Ventures (Dan Scholnick), Y Combinator.

Scott Cook
IBM Communications
312.669.4743
[email protected]

Heather Fitzsimmons
Mindshare PR for Docker
650-279-4360
[email protected]

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SOURCE IBM