Universal Server price cut meant to boost appeal

Informix aims to make its Universal Server object/relational database more attractive to users by repackaging it and slashing prices.

This scheme is part of Informix' move to make the product appeal to more mainstream business users. As a result, the company has cut the price of Universal Server version 9.1 to bring it in line with its Online Dynamic Server offering.

According to US reports, the company will knock $1,000 off the cost of the licence, bringing it to $1,500 next month. The report also states that it will unbundle the Web, text and image datablades - plug-in modules - from the core product to be sold separately.

Informix is also considering changing Universal Server's name, although it has not yet come up with an alternative and is working on a marketing campaign to reflect the change.

The product will be positioned as an internet database that is also suitable for data warehousing and transaction processing. Its support of the SQL3 object extensions to the SQL standard will be emphasised rather than its multimedia capabilities, which only appeal to a few users.

Informix has suffered financial instability over the past few months, after it admitted there had been irregularities in its financial reporting.

These included sales to resellers which were recorded as sales even though there had been no sale to users.

In October, Informix UK was served a High Court writ by reseller Morse Group. The writ calls upon Informix to pay #422,913 to Morse and alleges breach of contract.