Development tools vendor Inprise is boosting its commitment to research and development in Australia, with a major expansion to its R&D team.
Graham Porter, Inprise Australia's marketing director, said the company has recently hired five new R&D staff and is looking for up to 10 more.
'There's about 30 now and there will be 40 soon,' Porter said. 'We have an open policy of hiring as many staff as possible. This is the only Inprise R&D team outside the United States and I think the commitment to this unit from the office there is indicative of the quality of people here.' Porter said the team focused on developing unique products that differentiated Inprise from its competitors, one such product being Inprise AppCenter.
According to Porter, last year's figures showed more than half of the company's annual revenues were reinvested in R&D, whereas some of their competitors allocate less than 10 per cent.
In other news, Inprise will present its second annual Borland Developer Conference at Brisbane's Sheraton Hotel from Saturday November 13 to Tuesday November 16.
Last year, more than 398 delegates attended the conference, which provides an in-depth look at products and technologies and tips on how to sell them.
Porter said the BorCon 99 conference is a good opportunity for resellers to learn about new products and network with other sections of the channel.
'This year the focus is on the people developing and reselling the products,' Porter said. 'A lot of our partners are sponsoring the conference. The Swedish company, Baldsoft, is sponsoring and attending the conference and it is looking for resellers and distributors in Australia.'
Full conference price is $950 or $900 for registered user group members. Registration information: http://www.inprise.com.au
