1980 Informix is founded by Roger Sippl as Relational Database Systems Inc. |
1986 The company conducts an initial public offering and changes its name to Informix. |
1988 Informix merges with Innovative Software and flounders financially. |
1989 Phil White joins Informix as president and CEO. |
1993 Informix stock is ranked number one for return on equity in the Silicon Valley Top 150. Informix stock purchased for $32,000 in 1991 low is now worth $1 million. |
1994 Informix introduces an entirely rewritten database named OnLine Dynamic Server. Phil White is named Financial World magazine’s CEO of the year for the second straight year. |
1995 Informix overtakes Sybase as the number one challenger to Oracle. Informix stock is named the top five-year-performer by the Wall Street Journal.Informix purchases Illustra, an object-relational database software company, in December. |
1996 Informix announces Universal Server, the merging of Informix and Illustra. Phil White declares war on Oracle, sues the company, and calls it “sleazy.” Phil White receives NASDAQ’s Legend in Leadership award. Informix posts $939 million in annual sales. |
1997 Informix misses its first quarter revenue, its first revenue miss in seven years. Informix announces a $140 million loss for the first quarter, and class-action lawsuits are filed. Phil White names Robert Finocchio Jr. president and CEO. Phil White resigns as chairman. Informix restates revenues by $311 million for 1994-1996. |
1998 Informix restates revenues for the second time in six months. |
1999 Class-action lawsuits against Informix are settled for $142 million. |
2000 Informix acquires Ardent for $880 million. Informix moves its operations from California to Ardent’s Massachusetts headquarters. |
2001 Informix database assets are sold to IBM for $1 billion. Company renamed Ascential. |
2004 The Securities Exchange Commission civil case against Phil White is settled. Phil White pleads guilty to securities registration fraud in the criminal case against him. He serves a prison sentence at the United States Federal Correctional Institute at Lompoc, California. |
