Re: Is that true: IBM overtakes Oracle in total database sales

From: Jeremy Rickard <jrickard_at_unisystems.biz>
Date: 9 May 2002 18:21:16 -0700
Message-ID: <d36116ef.0205091721.6e79691b@posting.google.com>

"Pablo Sanchez" <pablo_at_dev.null> wrote in message news:<UtlC8.378$pa4.220866_at_news.uswest.net>...

> Oracle is tops by .2% Garnter called IBM (without Informix) and
> Oracle equal. The salient point is that Oracle lost market share.
> I'm hoping that causes some changes at Oracle.

Quite! According to the Gartner figures, Oracle lost 2.7% market share (new licence revenue) betwen 2001 and 2002, while DB2 gained 1.2%. This continues the DB2 trend in recent years.

IMO the problem for Oracle is its revenues are over-reliant on DBMS sales (>60% of revenue?), while IBM is undercuts them by some way on DB2 costs. Therefore Oracle either needs to compete to retain market share by aggressive price cutting (which won't please Wall Street), or keep its prices high and continue to lose share. The other option is to try to persuade all and sundry that DB2 sucks - hence the ultra-aggressive marketing campaigns of late. But that can only work so much.

Jeremy Rickard Received on Thu May 09 2002 - 20:21:16 CDT