Over the course of the past decade or so, IBM has introduced several different types of specialty processors. The basic idea of a specialty processor, is that it sits alongside the main CPUs and specific types of "special" workload is shuttled to the specialty processor to be run there, instead of on the primary CPU complex. Why is this useful or interesting to mainframe customers? Well, the specialty processor workload is not subject to IBM or ISV licensing charges...and, as every mainframe shop knows, the cost of software rises as capacity on the mainframe rises. But if capacity can be redirected to a specialty processor, then software license charges do not accrue-at least for that workload.