Award Software
| Company type | Private (until IPO in 1996), Public (from 1996) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Computer software |
| Founded | 1983 in San Jose, California, U.S. |
| Founder | Rene Vishney, Bob Stillman |
| Defunct | September 28, 1998 |
| Fate | Merged with Phoenix Technologies |
| Headquarters | Los Gatos, California , United States |
Key people | Rene Vishney (Chairman), Deborah Lee Vishney (CEO) |
| Products | AwardBIOS, CardWare, EliteBIOS, PC DIAG, CheckIt POSTcard, Preboot Manager, SMSAccess suite, WWWAccess suite, APIAccess |
| Parent | GCH Systems Ltd. (acquired 1993) |
Award Software International Inc. was established in 1983 by founders Rene Vishney and Bob Stillman in San Jose, California. The firm relocated its international headquarters to Los Gatos, California in 1984.
History
Co-founder Bob Stillman departed from the company in 1988. Ownership remained private under Rene Vishney, who served as chairman, alongside his wife Deborah Lee Vishney as CEO.
By 1990, Award BIOS had become the preferred choice among Asian PC clone manufacturers, overtaking the Phoenix BIOS produced by Phoenix Technologies. In 1993, Award was acquired by Taiwan's GCH Systems Ltd., a company that has since ceased operations.
Award Software International Inc. announced its initial public offering on 24 October 1996.
On 16 June 1997, Award expanded its portfolio by acquiring Unicore Software, Inc., a provider of BIOS upgrade solutions, which then operated as a subsidiary.
A merger agreement between Phoenix Technologies and Award Software was declared on 16 April 1998, with Phoenix emerging as the surviving company. This merger was finalized on 28 September 1998.
Subsidiaries
- Award Software Europe
- Award Software Hong Kong, Ltd
- Award Software Japan, KK: Founded on 3 June 1997
- Award Software International, Inc.
- Unicore Software, Inc.
Products
- AwardBIOS: A BIOS product initially created by Award Software and subsequently managed by Phoenix Technologies following the merger. Around 2001-2002, copyright ownership transitioned from Award to Phoenix. GIGABYTE motherboards retained the AwardBIOS copyright until they adopted AMI Aptio UEFI by 2012.
- CardWare: Software designed for PC Card functionality.
- EliteBIOS: A system management software suite targeting manufacturers of desktops, servers, mobile devices, and embedded systems.
- PC DIAG: Diagnostic software tool.
- CheckIt POSTcard: Diagnostic boards for Power On Self Test available in both ISA and PCI formats.
- Preboot Manager
- SMSAccess: A comprehensive system management software package comprising:
- DMIAccess: Utilities for Desktop Management Interface
- LMAccess: Hardware monitoring and alarm software compatible with Windows NT and Windows 95
- MPCAccess
- RPBAccess: Remote diagnostic and repair software executed before booting
- USBAccess: USB host software aimed at consumer electronics and embedded device producers.
- WWWAccess: Internet appliance software suite tailored for Intel x86 embedded platforms, including:
- APIAccess: Middleware facilitating integration of Win32 applications into real-time environments, acquired from Willows Software.
See also
External links
- Articles with short description
- 1983 establishments in California
- 1998 disestablishments in California
- 1998 mergers and acquisitions
- American companies established in 1983
- American companies disestablished in 1998
- BIOS
- Companies based in Mountain View, California
- Computer companies established in 1983
- Computer companies disestablished in 1998
- Defunct companies based in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Defunct computer companies based in California
- Defunct computer companies of the United States
- Defunct computer hardware companies
- Defunct software companies of the United States
- Software companies based in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Software companies based in Mountain View, California
- Software companies established in 1983
- Software companies disestablished in 1998