Cobalt clinches French educational server appliance deal

Linux server appliance specialist Cobalt Networks has made a major breakthrough into the European educational market, following the adoption of the Cobalt Qube by France Telecom for deployment in schools and other educational organisations. The servers are to be supplied via French systems integrator DNS Telecom as part of France Telecom's Scol@gora service. This will include core Web services, content filtering and virus protection. According to France Telecom Education technical director Michel Dana the Qube is "the best platform to deliver our Scol@gora services." DNS Telecom CEO Philippe Moity said the Qubes provided "a complete solution that did not require special maintenance. Most importantly, [France Telecom] needed a server platform that would enable easy integration and deployment of RuleSpace Enterprise Suite and Trend Micro Virus Scanner to protect the children from unwanted content." It's not clear how many units the France Telecom deal is worth, but the deployment is likely to be substantial. Presenting a recent survey of use of the Internet in schools France Telecom described itself as "leading an ambitious programme of Internet use in the world of education." According to the survey, almost all colleges and higher schools in France now have computers, and most are already connected to the Internet. Primary schools however are a more fertile field, with only one in four connected at the moment. ®