US-based telecom major, Sprint Corporation, a global communications company that is pioneering efforts in integrating wireline and wireless communications services, has joined hands with computer hardware major, Sun Microsystems, to create a strategic alliance.

Sprint is a large carrier of Internet traffic and a leader in broadband communications. Sprint built and operates the United States'' first nationwide all-digital, fibre-optic network and provides a portfolio of advanced data communications services.

Under the alliance agreement the two companies will align their sales and marketing teams to provide an integrated Web solution for customers. It is expected that this alliance will help both companies capture revenue and market share in the hosting and application infrastructure provider markets.

Sun Microsystems, a leading provider of industrial-strength hardware, software and services that power the Internet, will become a preferred technology provider within the Sprint E|Solutions Internet Centre infrastructure and will help drive significant sales activity during the next three years.

The alliance hopes to leverage Sun''s strong global leadership in providing the Internet computing platform and its reputation for outstanding technologies together with Sprint''s award-winning, top-rated Tier 1 IP backbone and expert sales force. This combination, the two companies, believe, will present customers with a compelling value proposition.

According to Mark Bowser, Sprint's vice president of Business Development, Strategy and Alliances Sprint and Sun, combined, offer a strong complementary alliance with a shared vision of providing end-to-end solutions to the market.