Oracle Wants Out Of App-Server BasementOracle Wants Out Of App-Server Basement

Oracle is redoubling its effort to be a major player in app servers. The software vendor revealed the second release of its Oracle9i Application Server, which boasts better support for Java and Web-services standards, new portal capabilities, and security and clustering technology enhancements.

Before this year, Oracle's app servers held only a small fraction of the market, far behind market leaders IBM and BEA Systems Inc. Oracle revamped its product line--essentially starting from scratch--rolling out the first release of Oracle9i Application Server last year. The software has been more successful than Oracle's earlier products, analysts say, but Oracle holds only 8% of the app-server market. It's tied with Sun Microsystems and still trails IBM (15% market share) and BEA (18%).

This is a strategic move for Oracle. App servers have become the linchpin technology for building, deploying, and integrating Web-based apps, Illuminata analyst James Governor says. Oracle, in fact, considers Oracle9i Application Server its third core product, along with its flagship database and its E-business line of enterprise resource planning and CRM apps, and is showcasing it at its OpenWorld conference in San Francisco this week. The company intends to break out sales figures for the product in its quarterly earnings reports.

The California Public Employees Retirement System in Sacramento, Calif., installed Oracle9i Application Server earlier this year as the foundation for its online self-service apps. The new release "will be part of my rollout strategy over the next six months," says Jack Corrie, CalPERS division chief of IT services. "What I'm looking for is the new clustering so that I can build more robust applications."

Oracle9i Application Server standard and enterprise editions are scheduled to ship in the first quarter of next year, priced at $10,000 per processor and $20,000 per processor, respectively. A developer version can be downloaded now from Oracle's Technology Network Web site.