Just a quick quote & link:

»Finally, some of the OMG’s early object services specifications, such as the life cycle, query, concurrency control, relationship, and collection services, were not only complex, but also performed no useful function whatsoever.«

(Michi Henning: The Rise and Fall of CORBA)

This quote is from a really good article, which analyzes how and why CORBA failed. I’m glad I never wasted any time on CORBA.