What are the current statistics in terms of market share between you and BEA?
Swainson: Last year Gartner reported that IBM’s share of the application server market rose to 37% in 2002 from 31% in 2001, making us the market leader. BEA dropped to second place, with market share declining 5 points, to 29%. Our goal was to become the market leader, and we think we’re extending our lead. WebSphere Journal: When talking to your customers, what are the key integration drivers from their perspective, and how is IBM delivering on each of them? Swainson: Integration is a must, but the integration priorities of customers are unique depending on the size of the business, the industry they compete in, the customer’s long-term goals, and the customer’s technology capability. There are a couple of key themes that rise to the top. Customers want to link different areas of their business with those of their clients and partners, and they want to leverage as much of their existing infrastructure as possible. We help them get there with IBM’s open, standards-based approach to in
