Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Applications
    • Applications
    • Database

    PeopleSoft Customers Voice Relief at End of Buyout Battle

    Written by

    John Pallatto
    Published December 13, 2004
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      eWEEK content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.

      Customers on Monday expressed relief more than dismay that Oracle Corp. had finally reached a definitive buyout agreement with PeopleSoft Inc., giving them hope that they will get reliable information about future product support.

      PeopleSofts fate was of particular concern to users of ERP (enterprise resource planning) software from J.D. Edwards & Co., which PeopleSoft acquired in June 2003 just before Oracle launched its offer to buy out PeopleSoft.

      “All in all, I am happy the battle is over, and now I would like to know definitively what we are looking at long term from a product perspective,” said Brighton, Colo.-based Alan VanNice, application manager for Adams County, Colo., which still runs J.D. Edwards ERP applications.

      He noted that Oracles story on PeopleSoft product support has changed dramatically since the company first announced that it wanted to buy PeopleSoft at an initial price of $16 per share at a total cost of $5 billion.

      Oracle had to repeatedly raise the price before it could announce Monday that the two companies had reached agreement on a buyout for $26.50 per share, at a total cost of $10.3 billion.

      Oracle executives initially said current versions of PeopleSoft and J.D. Edwards ERP software would be supported for as many as 10 years but not enhanced. VanNice recalled attending a customer briefing in which an Oracle executive said the company would set up a conversion center in Austin, Texas, to help customers migrate to Oracle applications.

      /zimages/4/28571.gifClick here to read about why Wall Street is giving a thumbs-up to the Oracle-PeopleSoft deal.

      VanNice on Monday cited news reports indicating that Oracle would release PeopleSoft 9 and J.D. Edwards upgrades over the next two years before it starts to work on a converged Oracle and PeopleSoft product that Oracle CEO Larry Ellison called “PeopleSoft 10.”

      VanNice said he still has a lot of questions about what the ultimate fate will be for J.D. Edwards and PeopleSoft applications. “Will we all migrate to Oracle applications one day?”

      He also asked whether Oracle understands the “poor perception” that PeopleSoft customers have about the Oracle applications.

      “In my opinion, Oracle has an uphill battle to turn happy PeopleSoft customers into happy Oracle customers,” VanNice said. But he said he is prepared to keep an open mind. “I am ready to learn more. I hope they dont drag their feet anymore.”

      Next Page: Its business–not personal.

      No Sudden Migration


      Michael Osmonde, an IT systems analyst with Crane & Co. Inc., a Dalton, Mass., manufacturer of high-grade paper for stationery and U.S. currency, said he was surprised that Oracles pursuit was so prolonged.

      “When it was announced 18 months ago, I figured that it was just a matter of time before it happened anyway,” Osmonde said. “Then I thought, if thats the case, should they be fighting it as hard as they did?” Osmonde said that while he understood the company was trying to get the best deal for shareholders and customers, it did keep customers in doubt for 18 months.

      “Its good that it is finally that the deal will actually go through,” so customers can find out what kind of product support they actually will get, he said. Whether its good for the overall ERP marketplace remains to be seen, Osmonde added.

      “If it turns out that [Oracle] wont enhance it a lot, … then we will have to evaluate the situation and do what is best for the company,” he said.

      “Right now, I think we are pretty much in a holding pattern. The reputation that Oracle has [in terms of the quality of its own applications and its third-party product support] is not the greatest,” he said, adding that Crane & Co. is “waiting to see” what Oracle does with the J.D. Edwards/PeopleSoft World ERP software it uses.

      Whatever the new products and enhancements the merged companies introduce, customers are going to take their time about making significant changes to their ERP software installations, said Tony Baer, principal analyst at onStrategies, a software industry research group based in New York.

      /zimages/4/28571.gifClick here to read about why SAP AG believes that the buyout gives it an opportunity to win over PeopleSoft customers who are not happy about the upgrade uncertainties.

      “Switching an ERP system is not a trivial process—you are talking about the core business processes of your company,” Baer said. Enterprises “are not going to chance it unless there is a sound business reason for doing do,” regardless of the upgrade plans of the merged Oracle-PeopleSoft organization.

      Nor does Baer expect to see a mass migration to SAP or some other competing product as a result of the merger. Customers typically feel that they spent so much time and money installing their ERP system that they dont want to repeat the process unless it is a business necessity, he said.

      From Oracles latest public statement, it looks like PeopleSoft customers will be able to go through two upgrade cycles before they face a decision on whether to move to a new product, Baer said.

      “If the upgrade process is bumpy, then you might see some churn or some migration to SAP,” he said. “But you are not going to see churn because some people dont like Larry Ellison,” he said. The decision will be strictly business, not emotional, he said.

      /zimages/4/28571.gifCheck out eWEEK.coms for the latest news, reviews and analysis about productivity and business solutions.

      John Pallatto
      John Pallatto
      John Pallatto has been editor in chief of QuinStreet Inc.'s eWEEK.com since October 2012. He has more than 40 years of experience as a professional journalist working at a daily newspaper and computer technology trade journals. He was an eWEEK managing editor from 2009 to 2012. From 2003 to 2007 he covered Enterprise Application Software for eWEEK. From June 2007 to 2008 he was eWEEK’s West Coast news editor. Pallatto was a member of the staff that launched PC Week in March 1984. From 1992 to 1996 he was PC Week’s West Coast Bureau chief. From 1996 to 1998 he was a senior editor with Ziff-Davis Internet Computing Magazine. From 2000 to 2002 Pallatto was West Coast bureau chief with Internet World Magazine. His professional journalism career started at the Hartford Courant daily newspaper where he worked from 1974 to 1983.

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Artificial Intelligence

      9 Best AI 3D Generators You Need...

      Sam Rinko - June 25, 2024 0
      AI 3D Generators are powerful tools for many different industries. Discover the best AI 3D Generators, and learn which is best for your specific use case.
      Read more
      Cloud

      RingCentral Expands Its Collaboration Platform

      Zeus Kerravala - November 22, 2023 0
      RingCentral adds AI-enabled contact center and hybrid event products to its suite of collaboration services.
      Read more
      Artificial Intelligence

      8 Best AI Data Analytics Software &...

      Aminu Abdullahi - January 18, 2024 0
      Learn the top AI data analytics software to use. Compare AI data analytics solutions & features to make the best choice for your business.
      Read more
      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Video

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2024 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×