IBM Makes Mobile Strides with z13 Mainframe

Big Blue just launched what it’s calling one of the most sophisticated computer systems ever built. IBM's new z13 mainframe caps a $1 billion investment and five years of development -- and taps into over 500 new patents in collaboration with more than 60 clients. IBM is pointing to three “firsts” with the z13. It’s the first system that can process 2.5 billion transactions a day -- that’s equal to 100 Cyber Mondays every day of the year -- which is a key capability given we’re headed toward about 40 trillion mobile transactions a day by 2025, according to Big Blue’s research.
z13 also claims to be the first system to make practical real-time encryption of all mobile transactions at any scale and the first mainframe system with embedded analytics to offer real-time insights on all transactions. The latter capability helps drive real-time fraud detection on business transactions by delivering “on the fly” analytic insights that IBM said are 17 times faster than comparable competitive systems.
Mitigating the ‘Starburst Effect’
“Every time a consumer makes a purchase or hits refresh on a smartphone, it can create a cascade of events on the back end of the computing environment. The z13 is designed to handle billions of transactions for the mobile economy,” said Tom Rosamilia, senior vice president of IBM Systems. "Consumers expect fast, easy and secure mobile transactions. The implication for business is the creation of a secure, high performance infrastructure with sophisticated analytics."
Mobile is the common theme here. The rapid growth of mobile apps is driving a customer culture that demands fast, seamless transactions from retailers and banks. z13 promises to help IT navigate the so-called “starburst effect” that happens when a single transaction ripples through systems and triggers as many as 100 additional system interactions that can lead to security vulnerabilities at each touchpoint.
According to IBM, 71 percent of CIOs and IT managers it surveyed said that security is their most significant mobile enterprise challenge. With data and transactions under constant threat from multiple points of attack, consumers want to know that their mobile transactions are as secure as financial data held by banks, according to Big Blue.
With support for Hadoop and more personalization features, IBM is positioning z13 as the ideal for private or hybrid cloud architecture at a 32 percent lower total cost of ownership over three years than a x86 cloud and 60 percent lower total cost of ownership over three years than a public cloud.
Mobile’s Independence Day
Charles King, principal analyst at Pund-IT, told us the z13 addresses key challenges in several ways. In order for mobile transactions to fully succeed, they will have to work more seamlessly and securely than traditional processes, he said.
“If they fail to do so, consumers will simply dip into their wallets and use the same old cash and credit cards that they always have,” King said. “In addition, consider the fact that retail transactions typically trigger a flood of associated events across a business' and its partners’ IT systems.”
King pointed to all the key highlights, such as the vast transaction capabilities, doubling the encryption speeds, and embedded analytics. His conclusion: the z13 qualifies as a “premium solution” for today’s most exacting transaction requirements and provides a foundation for tomorrow’s vision of freewheeling yet fully secure mobile commerce.
“Some competitors may grouse that the z13 is just the same old mainframe in a muscular new box. But that, too, easily denigrates the success IBM has built by serving thousands of demanding z Systems customers,” King said. “Instead, the IBM z13 suggests that the mainframe architecture is set to enable a new sort of Independence Day for the mobile economy. Both IBM’s transaction processing customers and their consumer clients should enjoy the upcoming fireworks.”