Audacious Hope
A Korean company threw a reckless challenge to Microsoft (MS), which dominates the global PC operating system (OS) market with a 95 percent share. It is TmaxSoft that has independently developed its own OS. The company, which failed at the first attempt, has challenged MS again after it finished the workout program.
TmaxOS has released its own OS, office and web browser, targeting the PC OS market worth 22.7 trillion won (US$20 billion) a year. In a bid to rapidly win influence in the market, the company will provide the OS to individual users for free, while charging it to businesses and public institutions.
TmaxOS held an event to unveil the UNIX-based TmaxOS, the TmaxOffice, which has the word processor ToWord and the web browser, ToGate, at the COEX Convention Center in Samsung-dong, Seoul, on Apr. 20.
TmaxOS CEO Park Hak-rae said, “With the development of TmaxOS, the company now has all three system software. Based on this, we can create an added value of at least US$8.5 billion (9.65 trillion won) if the product accounts for only 5 percent of the global market share.”
Park also said, “The OS is a basic system software which is required in all computing platforms. The company has developed TmaxOS, based on its expertise in the data base management system (DBMS) and middleware, a software connecting the OS and application programs, sectors accumulated from the competition with Oracle. With this, we will overcome various harmful effects from the monopoly of MS without fail. Since MS Windows is not a standardized format used in the information technology industry, various windows-based programs cannot be used on mobile devices and integrated cloud computing platforms. On the other hand, TmaxOS is based on the UNIX format, so it has greater openness and stability.” He said that the domestic software industry is not developing since it doesn’t use a standardized format.
Park added, “The introduction of TmaxOS, which is a standardized OS, is the first step to bring about a new innovation in the platform area, which has been monopolized by global IT firms such as MS and Google. At first, no one thought that we could beat Oracle in the DBMS sector but we finally did it. Thus, we will put up a good show in the OS market led by MS and break into global markets.”
TmaxOS will release an official product in Oct. and be available internationally beginning next year via 11 overseas affiliates of TmaxSoft. It plans to earn a 10 percent share of the global OS market by 2020.
Founded in 1997, TmaxSoft has been focusing on the system software business related to business to business (B2B), including middleware and DBMS. Then, the company established TmaxCore in 2007, working on the OS development, and unveiled “TmaxWindow” in July 2009. However, it failed to commercialize it and suffered from financial problems. In the end, it was taken over by Samsung SDS in 2010. Since then, TmaxSoft set up TmaxOS as its separate subsidiary in Dec. last year in order to re-try the OS development.