GreenButton

GreenButton was a software company founded in Wellington, New Zealand, in 2006. It initially operated under the name InterGrid and focused on giving smaller customers access to computational job-processing resources. Its business developed around helping independent software vendors and enterprise users adapt software workloads to cloud-computing environments. The company introduced a service called GreenButton in July 2010 and adopted GreenButton as its corporate name in 2011. The service was designed to make computationally intensive applications easier to deploy and use through cloud infrastructure, reducing the need for customers to maintain equivalent local computing capacity. This positioned GreenButton as an enabling platform rather than a conventional consumer software brand. GreenButton established a relationship with Microsoft during 2011 and joined the Microsoft Partner Network. The relationship included a reported investment of more than US$1 million and the appointment of Mark Canepa to GreenButton's board. During the same year, GreenButton was recognized as Microsoft's Windows Azure ISV Partner of the Year, reflecting its role in bringing third-party software workloads to Microsoft's cloud platform. In December 2011, the company expanded into the United States by opening an American headquarters in Palo Alto, California, and a sales office in Seattle. Its partnerships covered specialized technical and scientific applications. In January 2012, GreenButton worked with Pixar Animation Studios and Microsoft on a cloud-based rendering service for Pixar's RenderMan software. The service was intended to extend the RenderMan Interface Specification with cloud-rendering capabilities, allowing users to access additional processing capacity for image generation. GreenButton also pursued scientific and financial-services applications. In 2012, it partnered with New Zealand's GNS Science and the United States-based Stillwater Group on cloud computing for seismic processing. It also partnered with Numerix, a financial-technology company developing software for risk analysis of financial derivatives. These relationships illustrated the company's strategy of adapting cloud resources to workloads requiring substantial processing power or specialized software. On 2 May 2014, Microsoft announced that it had acquired GreenButton. After the acquisition, GreenButton's technology was incorporated into Microsoft Azure and became associated with Azure Batch, Microsoft's service for running large-scale parallel and high-performance computing jobs. The standalone GreenButton company therefore ceased to operate as an independent brand. Its principal legacy is as a bridge between independent software vendors, specialized applications, and Microsoft's Azure cloud platform.

GreenButton originated in Wellington in 2006 under the name InterGrid. Its initial purpose was to provide smaller customers with access to job-processing resources, addressing the difficulty of obtaining substantial computing capacity without building and maintaining dedicated infrastructure. The company subsequently developed a broader cloud-computing proposition aimed at software vendors and enterprise users. In July 2010, the company introduced the GreenButton service. The service helped independent software vendors make their applications available through cloud infrastructure and supported customers whose workloads required more computing capacity than a typical local system could provide. In 2011, the business adopted GreenButton as its name and joined the Microsoft Partner Network. Microsoft named it Windows Azure ISV Partner of the Year that year, highlighting its role in adapting third-party applications for Microsoft's cloud environment. GreenButton's relationship with Microsoft deepened in May 2011. The relationship reportedly included an investment of more than US$1 million and the addition of Mark Canepa to GreenButton's board of directors. In December 2011, the company established a presence in the United States, opening a headquarters in Palo Alto, California, and a sales office in Seattle. This expansion supported its efforts to reach software companies and enterprise customers in the American market. The company's partnership strategy extended into media, science, and financial technology. In January 2012, GreenButton announced a collaboration with Pixar Animation Studios and Microsoft involving a cloud-rendering service for RenderMan. The service enhanced the RenderMan Interface Specification and connected specialized image-generation software with cloud-based processing capacity. In June 2012, GreenButton announced work with GNS Science of New Zealand and the United States-based Stillwater Group on cloud computing for seismic processing. It also entered a partnership with Numerix, whose software was used for risk analysis involving financial derivatives. Microsoft announced its acquisition of GreenButton on 2 May 2014. Following the transaction, GreenButton's technology was integrated into Microsoft Azure rather than continuing as an independent cloud brand. Its capabilities became part of Azure's large-scale batch and high-performance computing direction and were associated with Azure Batch. The acquisition ended GreenButton's independent corporate trajectory while preserving its technology within Microsoft's cloud portfolio.

• 2014

  Acquired by Microsoft

  [1]GreenButtonen.wikipedia.org

  Microsoft acquired GreenButton and incorporated its technology into Azure, including the Azure Batch product line.

• 2012

  RenderMan cloud-rendering partnership

  [1]GreenButtonen.wikipedia.org

  GreenButton, Pixar, and Microsoft announced a cloud-rendering service for RenderMan software.

• 2011

  Company renamed GreenButton

  [1]GreenButtonen.wikipedia.org

  InterGrid adopted GreenButton as its company name, joined the Microsoft Partner Network, and received Microsoft's Windows Azure ISV Partner of the Year recognition.

• 2011

  Microsoft relationship expanded

  [1]GreenButtonen.wikipedia.org

  GreenButton allied with Microsoft in a relationship reported to include an investment of more than US$1 million and Mark Canepa joining its board.

• 2011

  United States offices opened

  [1]GreenButtonen.wikipedia.org

  GreenButton opened a United States headquarters in Palo Alto and a sales office in Seattle.

• 2010

  GreenButton service introduced

  [1]GreenButtonen.wikipedia.org

  The company launched a cloud-computing service under the GreenButton name to help software vendors and customers use hosted processing resources.

• 2006

  Company founded as InterGrid

  [1]GreenButtonen.wikipedia.org

  InterGrid was established in Wellington to provide smaller customers with access to computational job-processing resources.

A cloud-computing platform and integration partner that helped independent software vendors and enterprises move computationally intensive applications to hosted infrastructure.

• Cloud-computing platform · 2010

  GreenButton

  GreenButton was the company's principal cloud service, launched in 2010. It helped independent software vendors and enterprise users run computationally demanding applications through hosted infrastructure. Rather than being aimed at general consumers, the service focused on making specialized software and batch-oriented workloads easier to deploy in the cloud.

• Cloud rendering · 2012

  RenderMan cloud rendering service

  Developed with Pixar and Microsoft, this service connected Pixar's RenderMan image-generation software with cloud processing resources. It was intended to extend the RenderMan Interface Specification and provide additional computational capacity for rendering workloads.

• High-performance and batch computing

  Azure Batch

  Azure Batch is the Microsoft Azure product associated with technology inherited from GreenButton after the acquisition. It supports the execution of large-scale parallel and batch computing jobs across managed cloud resources.

• 2014

  Microsoft acquisition and Azure integrationM&A

  Background

  GreenButton had developed cloud technology for independent software vendors and specialized, computation-heavy workloads while maintaining a close relationship with Microsoft.

  Action taken

  Microsoft acquired GreenButton on 2 May 2014 and integrated its technology into Microsoft Azure.

  Aftermath

  GreenButton ceased operating as an independent company, and its technology became associated with Azure Batch.

  Source

• 2012

  Cloud rendering service for RenderManProduct launch

  Background

  Rendering workloads can require substantial processing capacity, making them a potential use case for cloud computing.

  Action taken

  GreenButton partnered with Pixar and Microsoft on a cloud-based service supporting Pixar's RenderMan software.

  Aftermath

  The partnership demonstrated GreenButton's application-focused approach to cloud computing in the media and animation sector.

  Source

• 2010

  Launch of the GreenButton cloud serviceProduct launch

  Background

  The company sought to help independent software vendors and other customers move computational workloads from local systems to cloud infrastructure.

  Action taken

  GreenButton introduced its namesake cloud service for hosted job processing and application enablement.

  Aftermath

  The service became the foundation of the company's cloud-partner strategy and later contributed technology to Microsoft Azure.

  Source

1. 1GreenButtonen.wikipedia.org