History
- June 16, 1977: Oracle Corporation was incorporated in Redwood Shores, California[1] as Software Development Laboratories (SDL) by Larry Ellison, Bob Miner and Ed Oates.
- June 1979: SDL is renamed to Relational Software Inc. (RSI), and relocates to Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California. Oracle 2, the first version of the Oracle database runs on PDP-11 and is sold to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The company decides to name the first version of its flagship product version 2 rather than version 1 because it believes companies may hesitate to buy the initial release of its product.
- October 1979: RSI actively promotes Oracle on the VAX platform (the software runs on the VAX in PDP-11 emulator mode)
- 1981 Umang Gupta joined Oracle Corporation where he wrote the first business plan for the company, and served as Vice President and General Manager of the Microcomputer Products **
- February 1981: RSI begins developing tools for Oracle, including the Interactive Application Facility (IAF), a predecessor to Oracle*Forms.
- Bruce Scott was one of the first employees at Oracle (then Software Development Laboratories). He co-founded Gupta Technology (now known as Centura Software) in 1984 with Umang Gupta, and later became CEO and founder of PointBase, Inc. Bruce was co-author and co-architect of Oracle V1, V2 and V3. He created the sample schema "SCOTT" (containing tables like EMP and DEPT) with the password defaulted to TIGER (apparently named after his cat).
- March 1983: RSI rewrites Oracle in C for portability and Oracle version 3 is released. RSI is renamed to Oracle to more closely align with its primary product. The word Oracle was the code name of a CIA project which the founders had all worked on while at the Ampex Corporation.
- October 1984: Oracle version 4 released, introducing read consistency
- November 1984: Oracle ports the Oracle database to the PC platform. The MS-DOS version (4.1.4) of Oracle runs in only 512K of memory. Oracle for MSDOS version 5 was released in 1986 running in Protected Mode on 286 machines using a technique invented by Mike Roberts, among the first products to do so.
- April 1985: Oracle version 5 released. It is one of the first RDBMSs to operate in client/server mode.
- 1986: Oracle version 5.1 released with support for distributed queries. Investigations into clustering begin.
- March 15, 1986: Oracle goes public with revenues of $55 million USD.
- August 1987: Oracle founds its Applications division, building business management software closely integrated with its database software. Oracle acquires TCI for its project management software.
- 1988: Oracle version 6 is released with support for row-level locking and hot backups. The PL/SQL procedural language was not embedded in the database (this was added in v7), but was included in various client tools (SQL*Forms, Reports)
- 1989: Oracle moves world headquarters to Redwood Shores, California. Revenues reach US$584 million
- 1990: In the third quarter, Oracle reports its first ever loss, hundreds of employees are laid off. Ellison hires Jeffrey O. Henley as CFO and Raymond Lane as COO.
- June 1992: Oracle 7 released with performance enhancements, administrative utilities, application development tools, security features, stored procedures, triggers, support for declarative referential integrity and the PL/SQL procedural language embedded in the database
- 1993: Releases Oracle's Cooperative Development Environment (CDE) which bundles Oracle Forms, Reports, Graphics, Book
- 1994: Oracle acquired the database-product DEC Rdb (now called Oracle Rdb) from Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) and development is still going on. Oracle Rdb is only available on the OpenVMS platform (also a former product of DEC).
- June 21, 1995: Oracle announces new data warehousing facilities, including parallel queries.
- November 1995: Oracle is one of the first large software companies to announce an internet strategy when Ellison introduces the network computer concept at an IDC conference in Paris
- April 1997: Oracle releases the first version of Discoverer, an ad-hoc query tool for business intelligence.
- June 1997: Oracle 8 is released with SQL object technology, internet technology and support for terabytes of data
- September 1997: Oracle announces its commitment to the Java platform, and introduces Oracle's Java integrated development environment, which will come to be known as Oracle JDeveloper.
- January 1998: Oracle releases Oracle Applications 10.7 NCA. All the applications in the business software now run across the web in a standard web browser.
- May 1998: Oracle Applications 11 is released.
- April 1998: Oracle announces that it will integrate a Java virtual machine with the Oracle database.
- September 1998: Oracle 8i is released.
- October 1998: Oracle 8 and Oracle Application Server 4.0 are released on the Linux platform.
- May 1999: Oracle releases JDeveloper 2.0, showcasing Business Components for Java (BC4J), a set of libraries and development tools for building database aware applications.
- 2000: OracleMobile subsidiary founded. Oracle 9i released.
- May 2000: Oracle announces the Internet File System (iFS), later rebranded as Oracle Content Management SDK.
- June 2000: Oracle9i Application Server released with support for building portals.
- 2001: Ellison announces that Oracle saved $1 billion implementing and using its own business applications
- 2004: Oracle 10g released.
- December 13, 2004: After a long battle over the control of PeopleSoft, Oracle announces that it has signed an agreement to acquire PeopleSoft for $26.50 per share (approximately $10.3 billion).
- January 14, 2005: Oracle announces that it will reduce its combined workforce to 50,000, a reduction of approximately 5,000 following the PeopleSoft take over. 90% of PeopleSoft product development and product support staff will be retained.
- March, 2005: Oracle extends its Middle East operations by opening a regional office in Amman, Jordan.
- October 25, 2006: Oracle announces Unbreakable Linux
- November 2, 2006: Oracles announces that it has agreed to acquire Stellent, Inc. (NASDAQ: STEL), a global provider of enterprise content management (ECM) software solutions, through a cash tender offer for $13.50 per share, or approximately $440 million.
- March 1, 2007: Oracle announced that it has agreed to buy Hyperion Solutions Corporation (Nasdaq: HYSL), a leading global provider of performance management software solutions, through a cash tender offer for $52.00 per share, or approximately $3.3 billion. The transaction is subject to customary conditions and is expected to close in April 2007.
- March 22, 2007: Oracle filed a court case against its major competitor SAP AG in the Californian courts for malpractice and unfair competition. The full text of the filing can be found on the claimants web site under the heading newsroom.
Technology timeline
- 1979: Offers the first commercial SQL RDBMS.
- 1983: Offers a VAX-mode database.
- 1984: Offers the first database with read consistency.
- 1986: Offers a client-server DBMS.
- 1987: Introduces UNIX-based applications.
- 1988: Introduces PL/SQL.
- 1992: Offers full apps implementation methodology.
- 1995: Offers the first 64-bit RDBMS.
- 1996: Moves to an open standards-based, web-enabled architecture.
- 1999: Offers its first DBMS with XML support.
- 2001: Becomes the first to complete 3 terabyte TPC-H world record.
- 2002: Offers the first database to pass 15 industry standard security evaluations.
- 2003: Introduces what it calls "Enterprise Grid Computing" with Oracle10g.
- 2005: Releases its first free database, Oracle Database 10g Express Edition (XE).
RDBMS release timeline
Oracle acquisitions
Made obvious with Peoplesoft in January 2005, Oracle has made acquisitions an important component of its growth strategy.
| Company | Month/Year | Industry | Valuation |
| Darwin | June 1999 | Darwin, Datamining technology | NA |
| Steltor | June 2002 | Enterprise calendaring system | NA |
| Collaxa | June 2004 | Business Process Management | NA |
| PeopleSoft | January 2005 | Enterprise Software | $10.3 billion |
| Oblix | March 2005 | Identity Management Solutions | NA |
| Retek | April 2005 | Retail Industry Solutions | $630 million |
| TripleHop | June 2005 | Context-sensitive Enterprise Search | . |
| TimesTen | June 2005 | Real-time Enterprise Solutions | . |
| ProfitLogic | July 2005 | Retail Industry Solutions | NA |
| Context Media | July 2005 | Enterprise Content Integration | . |
| i-flex | August 2005 | Banking Industry Solutions | $900 million |
| G-Log | September 2005 | Logistics Hib Solutions | . |
| Innobase | October 2005 | Discrete Transactional Open Source Database Technology | NA |
| Thor Technologies | November 2005 | Enterprise-wide User Provisioning Solutions. | . |
| OctetString | November 2005 | Virtual Directory Solutions | . |
| Temposoft | December 2005 | Workforce Management Applications | . |
| 360Commerce | January 2006 | Retail Industry Solutions | . |
| Siebel Systems | January 2006 | Customer Relationship Management Solutions | $5.85 billion |
| Sleepycat | February 2006 | Open Source Database Software for Embedded Applications | NA |
| HotSip | February 2006 | Communications Infrastructure Solutions | . |
| Portal Software | April 2006 | Software Suite for Communications Industry | . |
| Net4Call | April 2006 | Service Delivery Platform for Communications Industry | . |
| Demantra | June 2006 | Demand-driven Planning Solutions | . |
| Telephony@Work | June 2006 | IP-based Contact Center Technology | . |
| Sigma Dynamics | August 2006 | Real-time Predictive Analytics Software | . |
| Sunopsis | October 2006 | Enterprise Integration Software | . |
| MetaSolv Software | October 2006 | Solutions for Communications Service Providers | $219 million |
| Stellent | November 2006 | Content Management Solutions | $440 million |
| SPL WorldGroup | November 2006 | Revenue and Operations Management Software | . |
| Hyperion Solutions | March 1, 2007 | Enterprise Performance Management | $3.3 billion |
| AppForge (intellectual assets only) | April 2007 | Cross-platform handheld development |
|
| Agile Software Corporation | May 2007 | Product Life Cycle Management Software | 495 million (cash) |
Products and services
Technology products
Oracle Databases
As of 2004, Oracle Corporation shipped release 10g (g: grid) as the latest version of the Oracle Database. Oracle Application Server 10g using Java EE comprises the server part of that version of the database, making it possible to deploy web technology applications. The application server is the first middle-tier software designed for grid computing. The strong interrelationship between Oracle 10g and Java has enabled the company to allow developers to set up stored procedures written in the Java language, as well as those written in the traditional Oracle database programming language, PL/SQL.
Oracle Rdb is a relational database system running on OpenVMS platforms. Oracle acquired Rdb in 1994 from Digital Equipment Corporation. Oracle has since made many enhancements to this product and development continues today.
-
Oracle Fusion Middleware
-
Oracle Enterprise Manager
Oracle Enterprise Manager (OEM) used by database administrators (DBAs) to manage the DBMS, and recently in version 10g, a web-based rewrite of OEM called "Oracle Enterprise Manager Database Control". Oracle Corporation has dubbed the super Enterprise Manager used to manage a grid of multiple DBMS and Application Servers as "Oracle Enterprise Manager Grid Control".
-
Oracle Secure Enterprise Search
Oracle Collaboration Suite contains messaging, groupware and collaboration applications.
Oracle Corporation's tools for developing applications include Oracle Designer, Oracle Developer - that consists of Oracle Forms, Oracle Discoverer and Oracle Reports, Oracle JDeveloper, and several more. Many external and third-party tools make the Oracle database administrator's tasks easier.
Application products
Besides databases, Oracle also sells a suite of business applications. The Oracle eBusiness Suite includes software to perform financial (Oracle Financials), manufacturing, enterprise resource planning and HR (Human Resource Management Systems) related functions (Oracle HR). User access to these facilities is provided through a browser interface over the internet or corporate intranet.
Consequent to a number of high-value acquisitions beginning in 2003, especially in the Applications domain, Oracle currently maintains a number of Product Lines:
-
-
-
-
Development of applications commonly takes place in Java (using Oracle JDeveloper) or through PL/SQL (using, for example, Oracle Forms and Oracle Reports). Oracle Corporation has started a drive toward 'wizard'-driven environments with a view to enabling non-programmers to produce simple data-driven applications.
Services
- Oracle Consulting
- Oracle University
- Oracle On Demand
- Oracle Support
- Oracle Financing
Competition
In 1990, Oracle laid off 10% (about 400 people) of its work force because of a mismatch between cash and revenues. This crisis, which almost resulted in Oracle's bankruptcy, came about because of Oracle's "up-front" marketing strategy, in which sales people urged potential customers to buy the largest possible amount of software all at once. The sales people then booked the value of future license sales in the current quarter, thereby increasing their bonuses. This became a problem when the future sales subsequently failed to materialize. Oracle eventually had to restate its earnings twice, and also to settle out of court class action lawsuits arising from its having overstated its earnings. Ellison would later say that Oracle had made "an incredible business mistake."
Although IBM dominated the mainframe relational database market with its DB2 and SQL/DS database products, it delayed entering the market for a relational database on UNIX and Windows operating systems. This left the door open for Sybase, Oracle, and Informix (and eventually Microsoft) to dominate mid-range and microcomputers.
Around this time, Oracle fell behind technically to Sybase. In 1990-1993, Sybase was the fastest growing database company and the database industry's darling vendor, but soon fell victim to its merger mania. Sybase's 1993 merger with PowerSoft resulted in its losing its focus on its core database technology. In 1993, Sybase sold the rights to its database software running under the Windows operating system to Microsoft Corporation, which now markets it under the name "SQL Server."
In 1994, Informix Software overtook Sybase and became Oracle's most important rival. The intense war between Informix CEO Phil White and Ellison was front page Silicon Valley news for three years. Ultimately, Oracle defeated Informix in 1997. In November of 2005, a book detailing the war between Oracle and Informix was published. "The Real Story of Informix Software and Phil White" provides a detailed chronology of the battle of Informix against Oracle, and how Informix Software's CEO Phil White landed in jail because of his obsession to overtake Ellison. Later in 1997, Ellison was made a director of Apple Computer after Steve Jobs came back to the company. Ellison resigned in 2002, saying that he did not have the time to attend necessary formal board meetings.
Once Informix and Sybase were defeated, Oracle enjoyed years of industry dominance until the rise of Microsoft's SQL Server in the late 90s and IBM's acquisition of Informix Software in 2000 to complement their DB2 database. Today Oracle's main competition for new database licenses on UNIX, Linux, and Windows operating systems is with IBM's DB2 and with Microsoft SQL Server (which only runs on Windows). IBM's DB2 still dominates the mainframe database market.
In 2004, Oracle's sales grew at a rate of 14.5% to $6.2 billion, giving it 41.3% and the top share of the relational-database market (InformationWeek - March, 2005), with market share estimated at up to 44.6% in 2005 by some sources [1]. Oracle's main competitors in the database arena are IBM DB2 and Microsoft SQL Server, and to a lesser extent Sybase and Teradata [2], with open-source databases such as PostgreSQL and MySQL also having a significant share of the market. EnterpriseDB, based on PostgreSQL, has recently made inroads[3] by proclaiming that their product delivers Oracle compatibility features at a much lower price point.
In the applications arena, their main competitor is SAP. On March 22, 2007 Oracle sued SAP, accusing them of fraud and unfair competition.[2]
Oracle and SAP: Growing rivalry
Oracle Corporation and the German SAP AG have had a decade-long history of cooperation. This cooperation began in 1988, with the integration of SAP's R/3 enterprise application suite with Oracle's relational database products. Their products were considered to be complementary to one another, rather than substitutes. Despite the current SAP partnership with Microsoft, and the increasing integration of SAP applications with Microsoft products (such as SQL Server, a competitor to Oracle Database), Oracle and SAP continue their cooperation, and according to Oracle, the majority of SAP's customers uses Oracle databases.[3]
In recent years, however, competition between Oracle and SAP has increased, and as a result, the rivalry between the two companies has grown, even developing into a feud between the co-founders of the two companies, where one party would frequently voice strong negative comments about the other company.
In 2004 Oracle began to increase its interest in the business of enterprise applications (in 1989, Oracle had already released Oracle Financials). A series of acquisitions began, the most notable being the acquisition of PeopleSoft and Siebel (and most currently, Hyperion).
SAP recognized that Oracle was becoming a competitor in a market where SAP had the leadership, and saw an opportunity to lure in customers from those companies that had been acquired by Oracle. It would offer those customers special discounts on the licenses for its enterprise applications (Safe Passage Program). Oracle would resort to a similar strategy, by advising SAP customers to get "OFF SAP" (a play on the words of the acronym for its middleware platform "Oracle Fusion for SAP"),[4] and by also providing special discounts on licenses and services to SAP customers who chose Oracle.
Currently, Oracle and SAP are also competing in the third-party enterprise software maintenance and support market (the latter through its recently acquired subsidiary TomorrowNow). On March 22, Oracle filed a suit against SAP. The complaint alleged that TomorrowNow, which provides discount support for legacy Oracle product lines, used the accounts of former Oracle customers to systematically download patches and support documents from Oracle's website and appropriating them for SAP's use.[4] [5] Some ERP market analysts suggest the suit could be part of a strategy by Oracle to decrease competition by SAP in the third-party enterprise software maintenance and support market.[6][7]
Controversies
"Can't break it, can't break in"
Oracle markets many of its products using the slogan "Can't break it, can't break in", or "Unbreakable". This signifies the increasing demands on information safety. Oracle Corporation also stresses the reliability of networked databases and network access to databases as major selling points.
However, two weeks after its introduction in 2002, David Litchfield, Alexander Kornbrust, Cesar Cerrudo and others demonstrated a whole suite of successful attacks against Oracle products.[5][6]. The slogan was widely criticized as unrealistic, and as an invitation to crackers. But Oracle chief security officer Mary Ann Davidson says the criticism is unfair. Rather than representing a literal claim that Oracle's products are impregnable, the campaign refers to fourteen independent security evaluations[7] that Oracle's database server passed.
Relationship with John Ashcroft
Former Attorney General John Ashcroft sued Oracle in 2004 to prevent a contract acquisition. Then, in 2005, Oracle hired Ashcroft's recently created lobbying firm, The Ashcroft Group, LLC. Oracle, with Ashcroft's lobbying, then went on to acquire the contract, a multi-billion dollar intelligence application.[8]
Headquarters
Oracle HQ, shown in Database-Symbol-Style Shape.
Oracle Corporation has its world headquarters on the San Francisco Peninsula in the Redwood Shores area of Redwood City, adjacent to Belmont, near San Carlos Airport (IATA airport code: SQL).
Oracle HQ stands on the former site of Marine World Africa USA, which moved from Redwood Shores to Vallejo in 1986. Oracle Corporation originally leased two buildings from the site, moving its finance and administration departments from the corporation's former headquarters in Davis Drive, Belmont, California. Eventually, Oracle purchased the complex and constructed a further four main buildings.
The Oracle Parkway buildings were prominently featured as the futuristic headquarters of fictional company "NorthAm Robotics" in the Robin Williams film Bicentennial Man (1999).[9]
