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IBM Bluemix was the application-development platform in IBM’s 2014 cloud strategy: SoftLayer supplied the underlying infrastructure, while Bluemix was intended to help developers assemble and deploy applications without managing that infrastructure directly. IBM based Bluemix on its Open Cloud Architecture and Cloud Foundry. The figures and customer plans below are a snapshot from a Data Center Knowledge report published March 27, 2014, not a statement of current product status.
What was IBM Bluemix?
Bluemix was IBM’s cloud platform-as-a-service (PaaS) offering. Its purpose was to give developers a managed environment for building and deploying applications, rather than requiring them to configure each underlying infrastructure resource themselves. IBM described it as providing DevOps in the cloud: a user selected open-source technologies and back ends, and Bluemix provisioned an application environment.
IBM introduced Bluemix the month before the March 27, 2014 report. Its design drew on IBM’s Open Cloud Architecture and Cloud Foundry, with SoftLayer infrastructure underneath. In other words, Cloud Foundry and IBM’s architecture shaped the platform layer; SoftLayer supplied the infrastructure foundation.
How did SoftLayer fit IBM’s cloud strategy?
IBM acquired SoftLayer in 2013. Data Center Knowledge described the acquisition as worth $2 billion in its 2014 report. IBM’s strategy was to connect SoftLayer’s infrastructure and automation capabilities to its enterprise customer base, then offer Bluemix as a higher-level route to developing and deploying applications on that foundation.
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| Layer | Role in the 2014 strategy |
|---|---|
| SoftLayer | Infrastructure and automation foundation beneath Bluemix. |
| Bluemix | Platform layer for selecting technologies and back ends and provisioning an application environment. |
These were complementary roles, not competing products: SoftLayer provided the underlying resources, while Bluemix aimed to reduce the work of turning those resources into an application environment.
Was Bluemix built on Cloud Foundry?
Yes. The 2014 report described Bluemix as based on Cloud Foundry as well as IBM’s Open Cloud Architecture. It presented Bluemix as a way to work with open-source technologies and back ends through a managed platform. That description supports the claim that Cloud Foundry was part of Bluemix’s foundation; it does not, by itself, establish the exact implementation or feature set of later IBM services.
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How many users were testing Bluemix?
IBM reported that more than 5,000 users were testing Bluemix in less than one month after its introduction, according to Data Center Knowledge in March 2014. That is an early testing figure, not a count of paying customers or evidence of long-term adoption.
The same report said SoftLayer had gained 3,500 clients in the nine months after its acquisition and that this was approximately twice its pre-acquisition growth rate. That figure describes SoftLayer client growth over that period; it should not be read as Bluemix customer growth.
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What companies used or planned to use Bluemix?
Pitney Bowes: location services
Pitney Bowes collaborated with IBM on a location-services API offered through Bluemix. The report said Pitney Bowes location-intelligence solutions were used by more than 1.2 billion people worldwide in check-in or location-sharing contexts. That figure describes the reach of Pitney Bowes solutions, not the number of Bluemix users.
The API was intended to support geographically contextual applications. Examples in the report included more accurate insurance underwriting and retail promotions targeted by location. IBM Cloud Platform Services general manager Steve Robinson said, “Together, IBM and Pitney Bowes are developing a powerful lineup of cloud services around mobile application development and location intelligence,” as quoted by Data Center Knowledge on March 27, 2014.
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GameStop: hybrid applications linking stores and online services
GameStop’s Technology Institute partnered with IBM and Texas A&M University’s Mays Business School. GameStop planned to use Bluemix for mobile and cloud applications integrated with existing systems, creating a hybrid-cloud environment that could connect in-store and online customer interactions. The report described a plan, not proof that every proposed application had launched.
Robinson characterized the aim as integrating existing systems into a new class of applications and bringing physical and digital commerce platforms into closer balance. His statement described the partnership’s intended direction, rather than a measured outcome.
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jStart: help building proofs of concept
IBM also offered an 8–10 week collaboration with jStart to help customers develop proofs of concept using emerging technologies. The report identified jStart as an IBM team that helped companies get started with IBM technologies. This support added a guided-development option alongside Bluemix’s self-service platform approach.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the 2014 account establishes—and what it does not
The report shows how IBM positioned Bluemix at launch: Cloud Foundry and IBM architecture at the platform layer, SoftLayer below it, and enterprise-oriented examples involving location services and hybrid applications. It also records early testing and SoftLayer client-growth figures, with the figures tied to their distinct measures and time periods.
Because the account dates from March 2014, it does not establish Bluemix or SoftLayer’s current names, availability, pricing, or service status in 2026. Those details require current IBM information; the 2014 launch description should not be used as a guide to buying or deploying a service today.
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