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Wipro Technologies takes Linux to Embedded Markets

Wipro Technologies, one of the largest engineering service provider from India, is helping its customers build next generation internet appliances using embedded Linux

Bangalore, INDIA, March 29, 2001 -- 
Wipro Technologies has over the years built considerable expertise in all flavors of Unix. Leveraging on this strength, it has now stepped up its focus on Linux that is fast getting to be the operating system of choice. Apart from executing several customer projects on Linux, Wipro engineers regularly contribute to various Linux forums. 


M Divakaran, Chief Executive, Embedded and Internet Access solutions, Wipro Technologies says that the company has been closely observing the shift in the operating systems market towards Linux and the support that it is garnering from leading IT vendors across the globe. 


Wipro Technologies has over 500 engineers having expertise on Linux platform he says, adding that there has been an increase in the number of Linux-based client engagements. 


In the recently concluded `BangLinux' conference at Bangalore (India), Wipro had showcased a digital set-top box implementing a video-on-demand solution and a digital television system, both products using embedded Linux as the real time operating system. 


"All our solutions are based on standards and Linux is a fast emerging standard," says Divakaran. 


With India being a predominately Unix country, getting engineers having Linux expertise is a lot easier. What also helps is the developer community's passion for Linux, he says. 


Divakaran says the digital set-top-box solution based on embedded Linux - which Wipro completed in a record time of three months - was a very complex one as it involved enabling multiple devices on the digital set-top-box and making it suitable for a highly demanding personal video recorder market. 


The undisclosed US company which gave this project to Wipro is in the final stages of winning a few contracts from leading consumer electronics makers for this solution, he says. 


Wipro, he says, is also building components that form a residential gateway for which the embedded operating system will be Linux. This project, according to him, is highly challenging as it means indentifying downsizeable areas in Linux (kernel and user space) so as to make the end product a very cost effective one. 


The technical complexity of the project, he says, also comes from adding real-time features like priority scheduling and run-time software upgrades, and the requirement of supporting a diskless boot and a FLASH memory-based file system. 


Various network interfaces for connecting to the Internet as well as to devices at home need to be supported along with a management framework to manage the devices, he adds. 


"Linux is a recent entrant in the embedded operating systems market but it is fast becoming a force to reckon with. As the source code is freely available and there are no runtime royalty payments, Linux is being chosen over other OS for embedded devices and appliances," says Divakaran. 


IDC in a recent report states that the appliance market which comprises of products like handhelds, set-top boxes, gaming consoles and web terminals is likely to grow to a $17.8 billion or 89 million unit market by the year 2004. IDC also predicts that most of these devices will run on embedded Linux. 


Wipro has developed a large number of IP (intellectual property) for various embedded products. These ready-made IPs benefit customers as they save time and cost. 


Some of Wipro IPs include Bluetooth stack, 1394, USB and various protocols for telecom and datacom markets. Linux is the common platform for the development of the IPs. 


Visit Wipro Technologies - Embedded & Internet Access Solutions division at www.wipro.com/embedded



About Wipro Technologies
Wipro Technologies is a part of Wipro Limited, (NYSE: WIT) which provides high end IT solutions to leading companies worldwide and has other profitable businesses in niche markets in India. The IT solutions provided include application development services to corporate enterprises and research and development services for hardware and software design to technology companies. Our top clients include Lucent, NCR, Nortel and Compaq. Wipro Technologies was the first IT services provider in the world to be awarded the SEI-CMM Level 5 quality certification, a standard widely accepted in the software industry to measure the maturity and effectiveness of software processes. More information can be obtained from www.wipro.com. 


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