BT signs up BEA for web services

NEWS BT has bumped up its web services credentials by wheeling out BEA as its other main partner in addition to Microsoft. The relationship means the telco will straddle both main web services camps - offerings based around Microsoft's .Net environment and those aligned with the Java programming language, specifically the J2EE standard. The latest agreement builds on BEA's contract to supply BT with its WebLogic application server platform and BT points out it has "in excess of 18 months experience of deploying and using web services based on BEA technology internally". As it stated when signing up Microsoft as a partner, BT wants to be a "trusted broker for web services". Now it also wants to be known for providing choice, between .Net and J2EE. BEA specialises in middleware, especially WebLogic, and leads a pack of bigger vendors in supplying application server software - crucial to web services - that includes IBM, Microsoft and Oracle.