Business applications maker PeopleSoft has signed deal
with integration technology supplier Ascential Software to handle
the integration plumbing for its line of corporate performance
management software.
PeopleSoft will embed Ascential code into its performance suite
as well as reselling Ascential's packaged application connection
kits (Pack).
"As our customers extend analytic solutions across multiple
departments, seamless data integration becomes increasingly
important," said Renee Lorton, senior vice-president and general
manager of PeopleSoft enterprise financial management.
In particular, PeopleSoft wanted Ascential because of the
breadth of its offering, as well as its metadata management tools,
which will help customers do roll-outs more quickly and cut
software costs.
The Ascential DataStage software transforms and moves
transactional, operational and analytic data, while Ascential's
MetaStage software manages and integrates enterprise metadata.
Ascential DataStage is being immediately embedded in PeopleSoft
Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) offerings. Ascential
MetaStage will be incorporated in PeopleSoft's EPM product later
this year.
PeopleSoft has also licensed DataStage Server and Ascential
Packs for PeopleSoft Enterprise and EnterpriseOne products. The
company will resell Ascential Packs for SAP BW and SAP R/3, as well
as for applications from Siebel Systems and Oracle.
The move has implications for the hundreds of existing
PeopleSoft customers who have already installed software from
Informatica, said Jack Hafeli, an analyst at Ventana Research.
Informatica was PeopleSoft's previous integration software
partner.
Hafeli urged these Informatica users to "cautiously assess the
migration challenges with business requirements in mind". Switching
from Informatica could be difficult, he said, but Ascential and
PeopleSoft will help customers seeking to convert to Ascential.
Their programme will include free consulting for training and
testing the new product.
"However, if your organisation has vested IT skills and
budgetary resources in Informatica's data integration solutions
across the enterprise, you should consider the potential advantages
of continuing to use the Informatica solutions," Hafeli said.
Marc L Songini writes for IDG News Service