CHICAGO, Jan. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- AT&T today announced it has been awarded a three-year contract from Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. (CME), the leading futures exchange in the United States, for a fully managed hosting solution to support CME's www.cme.com Web site. Terms of the contract were not disclosed.
The site, located in AT&T's Chicago-area Internet Data Center, hosts applications that enable thousands of traders, brokers and market analysts around the world to access real-time quotes, research historical trading data and obtain corporate information.
Under terms of the contract, AT&T will manage all aspects of CME's hosting environment -- including security, storage, databases, applications and infrastructure associated with the Web site. Additionally, AT&T will provide tape back-up and restore services supporting CME's business continuity and disaster recovery plans to ensure clients have uninterrupted access to its databases and proprietary applications. AT&T already provides CME with an integrated portfolio of networking, Internet Protocol and teleconferencing services.
"We are a leading worldwide futures exchange, and our Web site provides market participants, customers, members and shareholders around the world with access to CME's market data, product information and background about CME as a publicly traded company," said Rich Chandler, CME's Director of Technology. "We view AT&T as a technology partner that helps CME to achieve its business goals. The cme.com hosting arrangement is an excellent example of the value of this partnership."
AT&T will manage CME's Web site and applications through its integrated Global Enterprise Management System (iGEMS), an end-to-end global network management platform that enables AT&T to proactively monitor and manage the performance of clients' networking and applications environment. Additionally, the AT&T BusinessDirect Web portal provides CME with real-time, secure access to detailed information about its AT&T-hosted infrastructure and applications.
AT&T worked closely with Sun Microsystems, an AT&T Strategic Alliance, to close the CME deal. Sun provided critical expertise on various applications within Sun architectures, allowing the development of best-in-class solutions.
About AT&T
For more than 125 years, AT&T (NYSE: T - News) has been known for unparalleled quality and reliability in communications. Backed by the research and development capabilities of AT&T Labs, the company is a global leader in local, long distance, Internet and transaction-based voice and data services.
About Chicago Mercantile Exchange
Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. (www.cme.com) is the largest futures exchange in the United States. As an international marketplace, CME brings together buyers and sellers on its trading floors and GLOBEX® electronic trading platform. CME offers futures and options on futures primarily in four product areas: interest rates, stock indexes, foreign exchange and commodities. The exchange moved about $1.4 billion per day in settlement payments in 2003 and managed $37.6 billion in collateral deposits at Dec. 31, 2003, including $1.5 billion in deposits for non-CME products. CME is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings Inc. (NYSE: CME - News), which is part of the Russell 1000® Index. Chicago Mercantile Exchange, CME and GLOBEX are registered trademarks of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. Further information about CME and its products is available on the CME Web site at www.cme.com.
