PRESS: Oracle Acquires OLAP Software Business from IRI

Press Release from Oracle below. Followups directed to comp.databases.olap

                 ORACLE ACQUIRES OLAP SOFTWARE BUSINESS 
                     FROM INFORMATION RESOURCES, INC. 
 

    Oracle Expands Data Warehousing Lead With Addition of OLAP Products  

  June 21 San Francisco Event to Unveil New Oracle Data Warehousing Products  

REDWOOD SHORES, Calif., June 12, 1995-Oracle Corp. and Information Resources, Inc. today announced the signing of a definitive agreement in which Oracle will acquire the assets of IRI Software's on-line analytical processing (OLAP) business for $100 million in cash. IRI Software's OLAP products complement Oracle's database, tools and packaged applications technology to enable customers to analyze and make intelligent business decisions based on finance, sales, marketing and other business information that is typically stored within corporate databases. Oracle will account for this acquisition as a purchase transaction.

        Specifically, Oracle will acquire from IRI Software its Express family of client/server OLAP products used for decision support. The Express product family includes server technology and client tools used primarily for sales, marketing, finance and management applications.

        As part of the agreement, IRI Software will retain its identity as a business of Information Resources, Inc. It will continue to develop, market and sell applications for the consumer packaged goods and retailer markets based on Express technology licensed from Oracle. IRI Software will also act as a Value Added Reseller (VAR) of Oracle's newly acquired OLAP products, as well as the Oracle7 database.  

Oracle in Lead for Scalable Data Warehouses By adding an industry-leading OLAP technology for decision support and general analysis, Oracle extends its current offering to enable customers to manage and perform complex analysis on massive amounts of information ranging from gigabytes to terabytes of data. Further details on Oracle's data warehousing products, services and alliances will be unveiled on June 21 at an event in San Francisco.

        OLAP technology, such as IRI Software's Express product, is increasingly viewed as a critical component to an enterprise-wide data warehousing solution. Oracle is already the leading database provider for data warehousing applications today, according to the Stamford, Conn.-based industry analyst firm META Group (Feb. 1995, Applications Development Strategies Survey).

        META also found that more than 90 percent of the companies it surveyed planned to implement a data warehousing solution within the next year. Data warehousing environments encompass a data store, tools for complex analysis as well as ad hoc query and reporting, and decision support applications which allow users to analyze operational information across functional areas.

"The combination of Oracle's leading database position in data
warehousing and the strength of the Express people and products in data analysis add up to the most complete product offering in the industry," said Jerry Held, senior vice president, Oracle Server Technologies Division.

"Our joint customers were eager to have a seamless technology
integration between their operational data in Oracle Applications and the sophisticated analytical tools from IRI. We believe the combination will be unique in the marketplace," said Ron Wohl, senior vice president, Oracle Applications Division.  

IRI Software Employees Join Oracle
"IRI Software employees and customers are excited to join Oracle," said Jeffrey Stamen, president, IRI Software. "Our mutual Oracle7 and IRI Software customers have benefited from our joint offerings in the past. With our recent efforts to integrate the Express product family with Oracle
Applications, we have found many natural synergies between the products as well as the corporate cultures."

        Approximately 600 software developers, sales, support, marketing and consulting employees from IRI Software, responsible for the Express brand, are expected to join Oracle. Oracle will create a new OLAP Products Division, based in Waltham, Mass., headed by Jeffrey Stamen. Employees in other worldwide locations will be integrated with existing Oracle operations in those countries. These steps will help ensure that customers continue to
benefit from the same products, support and service that they receive today.

        The agreement will be effective upon the close of the transaction, pending government approval. At that time, Express customers will be able to take advantage of Oracle's service and support offerings.

        Oracle Corp., a $2 billion company with headquarters in Redwood Shores, Calif., is the world's leading supplier of information management software. Oracle software runs on personal digital assistants, set-top devices, PCs, workstations, minicomputers, mainframes and massively parallel computers. The company offers its products, along with related consulting, education and support services, in more than 90 countries around the world.

        IRI Software, headquartered in Waltham, Mass., develops and markets Express, a client/server OLAP software development environment that turns corporate data into business intelligence for marketing, sales, financial and executive applications. The company is a business of Chicago-based Information Resources, Inc., (NASDAQ/IRIC), which provides a variety of software and information services for improved end-user decision making.  

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