Well, the deal of the day is Oracle taking Sun away from IBM. Oracle is supposedly looking at the Solaris operating system and Java. It'll be hard to say what Oracle will do with Java--and with MySQL, an open source database alternative to Microsoft SQL Server. I'm not sure that Oracle has open source experience, but it is experienced in integrating companies and technologies. Initial worries were mainly around what might happen to this latter product. At any rate, Oracle becomes a more formidable rival to IBM. I'm beginning to hear about companies in manufacturing implementing Oracle in lieu of SAP, so this may be an interesting development.
Analysts at Info-Tech Research are bullish on the move:
Sun/Oracle Merger âo[base "] a Good News Story
The announcement of a possible acquisition of Sun Microsystems by Oracle Corporation is good news for existing clients of both companies. According to IT research firm Info-Tech Research Group, there are three reasons why this purchase makes sense.
First, Sun and Oracle have a long history of coordinating development activities and are likely to build a powerful, consistent and survivable joint product strategy quickly. They will avoid many of the culture clashes that were likely in a Sun/IBM merger. Further, Sunâo[dot accent]s expertise and credibility in hardware, Java and open systems is complementary to Oracleâo[dot accent]s expertise in enterprise applications, development tools and database management systems. The combined organization will be a strong innovator and competitor in setting the agenda for IT innovation. And finally, Oracleâo[dot accent]s track record of continued support for acquired products should reassure Sunâo[dot accent]s existing client base, for example, users of MySQL, that they can count on continued, albeit potentially diminished, support for their current investments.
In any acquisition, unprofitable and overlapping product areas are potential targets for end-of-life, and Oracle might choose to sell-off parts of its combined business to other companies. However, given that Sun needs a suitor, Oracle is a good match.
6:49:10 PM 
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