Salesforce.com, the enterprise cloud computing company, today announced an expansion of its global strategic alliance with Google with the availability of Force.com for Google App Engine.

Force.com for Google App Engine is a new set of tools and services to enable developer success with application development in the cloud. The new offering brings together Force.com and Google App Engine, connecting two of the industry's leading cloud computing platforms and enabling the creation of entirely new Web and business applications. Force.com for Google App Engine builds on the relationship between salesforce.com and Google, spanning philanthropy, business applications, social networks and cloud computing.

"We have an open vision for cloud computing," said Marc Benioff, chairman and CEO, salesforce.com. "Developers now can take advantage of the easy to use and rapidly scalable cloud computing infrastructures from Google and salesforce.com to build and deliver powerful business applications."

"At Google, as at salesforce.com, we are committed to enabling developer success with cloud computing," said Tom Stocky, director of product management at Google. "Bringing together Google App Engine and Force.com will foster the creation of new Web applications and further demonstrate the power of the Web as a platform."

Force.com for Google App Engine provides a new set of tools and services that will foster the creation of new kinds of Web and business applications built and delivered entirely in the cloud. Instead of managing and maintaining their own client/server infrastructure, developers can use cloud computing infrastructure from Google and salesforce.com to build, run and deliver new applications on the Web. Web applications developed on App Engine are easy to build, easy to maintain, and easy to scale as traffic and data storage needs grow. App Engine offers a rich developer community and libraries to power consumer-oriented interactive web applications.

Similarly, Force.com provides developers a complete environment to quickly build business applications that run on salesforce.com's trusted global infrastructure. Now, consumer-oriented Web applications built on App Engine can leverage enterprise data stored in Force.com.

For end users of these applications, the integration of Force.com and Google App Engine means that applications can be powered by both systems while providing a seamless user experience and the trust and reliability of two of the world's leading cloud computing platforms.

Using Force.com for Google App Engine, developers can build applications that span both salesforce.com and Google's cloud computing platforms, and take advantage of the sum of their features as desired. Force.com for Google App Engine provides:

• A means to leverage Python in a scalable cloud environment and interact directly with database, workflow and logic capabilities in Force.com. 

• Force.com for Google App Engine enables the creation of Python libraries that when placed on Google App Engine, allow App Engine apps to read and write to Force.com using the Force.com API.

• App Engine developers get access to Force.com services and capabilities including mobile, analytics, security and sharing models, user authentication, multi-language and currency support and more.

"In times like these, companies are asking for ways they can take advantage of the low-cost and low-risk benefits of cloud computing for their enterprise application development projects," said Narinder Singh, CMO, Appirio, a leading salesforce.com and Google Enterprise partner. "Force.com for Google App Engine brings together the leaders in cloud computing to help address those needs and allows corporate IT to easily scale up or down to meet changing business conditions."

Building on Success

The companies have been working together to advance philanthropic causes as well as the benefits of cloud computing for developers and customers. Beginning in 2003 with joint work around the creation of Google.org, the alliance has been extended to work together on mashups, Salesforce for Google AdWords™, Group Edition featuring Google AdWords, OpenSocial, Salesforce for Google Apps, Force.com for Google Data APIs and now Force.com for Google App Engine.

More than 5,000 salesforce.com customers are using Google Apps today, and more than 10,000 are using Salesforce for Google AdWords. And, 5 of the top 10 most popular applications on the Force.com AppExchange marketplace come from Google-related partners, demonstrating the growing developer opportunity and customer demand for third-party applications that leverage multiple cloud computing platforms.

Force.com for Google App Engine - Harnessing the Power of Cloud Computing for Developers

Force.com for Google App Engine will help developers create new Web and business applications that leverage the capabilities of App Engine, at the same time allowing access to Force.com data and APIs from directly within App Engine projects and applications. Force.com for App Engine includes:

• Getting started guide

• Python library documentation

• Examples showing Python code accessing Force.com

• Testing harness for the provided library

• Wiki FAQ page on developer.force.com with best practices, latest tips and tricks

Availability
Force.com for Google App Engine is freely available at http://developer.force.com/codeshare and at http://code.google.com.

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