IBM MULTINATIONAL

Who they are:
International Business Machines Corporation is a multinational computer technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, USA. The company is one of the few information technology companies with a continuous history dating back to the 19th century. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and offers infrastructure services, hosting services, and consulting services in areas ranging from mainframe computers to nanotechnology.

IBM has been known through most of its recent history as the world’s largest computer company; with over 355,000 employees worldwide, IBM is the largest information technology employer in the world (1).

Names they go by:

-Abbreviated IBM and nicknamed “Big Blue.” -The company which became IBM was founded in 1888 as the Tabulating Machine Company by Herman Hollerith, in Broome County, New York. It was incorporated as Computing Tabulating Recording Corporation (CTR) on June 16, 1911, and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1916. IBM adopted its current name in 1924, when it became a Fortune 500 company.

What they do:
They have “research locations” in the following places: San Jose, CA, Austin, TX, Dehli and Bangalore, India, Yamato, Japan, Rüeschlikon, Switzerland, Haifa, Israel, and additional locations in MA and NY. Some Projects 1.) developerWorks is a website run by IBM for software developers and IT professionals.
2.)alphaWorks is IBM’s source for emerging software technologies. These technologies include:

• Flexible Internet Evaluation Report Architecture - A highly flexible architecture for the design, display, and reporting of Internet surveys. • IBM History Flow Visualization Application - A tool for visualizing dynamic, evolving documents and the interactions of multiple collaborating authors. • IBM Linux on POWER Performance Simulator - A tool that provides users of Linux on Power a set of performance models for IBM’s POWER processors. • Database File Archive And Restoration Management - An application for archiving and restoring hard disk files using file references stored in a database. • Policy Management for Autonomic Computing - A policy-based autonomic management infrastructure that simplifies the automation of IT and business processes. • FairUCE - A spam filter that verifies sender identity instead of filtering content. • Unstructured Information Management Architecture (UIMA) SDK - A Java SDK that supports the implementation, composition, and deployment of applications working with unstructured information. • Accessibility Browser - A web-browser specifically designed to assist people with visual impairments, to be released as open-source software. Also known as the “A-Browser,” the technology will aim to eliminate the need for a mouse, relying instead completely on voice-controls, buttons and predefined shortcut keys.

3.)Virtually all modern console gaming systems use microprocessors developed by IBM (e.g. Xbox 360). 4.) IBM announced it will launch its new software, called “Open Client Offering” which is to run on Microsoft’s Windows, Linux and Apple’s Macintosh. The company states that its new product allows businesses to offer employees a choice of using the same software on Windows and its alternatives. 5.) UC2 (Unified Communications and Collaboration) is an IBM and Cisco joint project based on Eclipse and OSGi. It will offer the numerous Eclipse application developers a unified platform for an easier work environment. 6.)Extreme Blue is a company initiative that uses experienced IBM engineers, talented interns, and business managers to develop high-value technology. The project is designed to analyze emerging business needs and the technologies that can solve them. These projects mostly involve rapid-prototyping of high-profile software and hardware projects. 7.)In May 2007, IBM unveiled Project Big Green — a re-direction of $1 billion per year across its businesses to increase energy efficiency. The author of IBM and the Holocaust, Edwin Black has alleged that, during World War II, IBM CEO Thomas J. Watson used overseas subsidiaries to provide the Third Reich with punch card machines that could help the Nazis to track down the European Jewry. IBM denies that they had control over these subsidiaries after the Nazis took control of them. A lawsuit against IBM based on these allegations was dismissed (1). Excerpted from an article by Dan Wilchins and Philipp Gollner, Reuters, January 3rd, 2008: “Neighbors of a former IBM plant in New York state sued the company on Thursday, saying it released chemicals into the air, ground and water for nearly 80 years that caused birth defects and cancer. Some 90 residents of the upstate New York towns of Endicott and Union say that from 1924 to 2002, IBM dumped chemicals including trichloroethylene and tetrachloroethylene near the Endicott plant where the computer giant was born. “IBM will defend itself vigorously against these claims that have no merit in science,” company spokesman Michael Maloney said. The lawsuit is the first of several planned against IBM by nearly 1,000 people who say they have been harmed by the chemicals, lawyers for the plaintiffs said” (2). Government Connections: On their website, they claim to provide “business solutions” to governments which include: “Customs, ports and border management, Defense: network centric operations, Digital communities, Finance and administration, Postal Public safety and homeland security, Shared services, Social services and social security, and Solutions for all agencies.”

On January 25th, 2006, Lisa Alcalay Klug of The New York Times reported: “A lawsuit was filed in federal court Tuesday accusing I.B.M. of denying overtime pay to tens of thousands of workers…”( http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=13167: “US: I.B.M. Accused of Denying Overtime Pay to Workers”) (2). 1.)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM 2.)www.corpwatch.org 3.) www.ibm.com
Book and film: IBM and the Holocaust, By Edwin Black