It will now hit the market promising deep discounts compared with traditional players
The market for installing German software firm SAP's complex enterprise products has long been known as one fraught with cost and implementation time blowouts.
Describing the $US23 billion global SAP services market as "overstated and overcharged", HCL CEO Vineet Nayar said the Axon/HCL entity would offer prices at least 20 per cent lower than had been normal so far.
He would also offer fixed-price implementation contracts and risk/reward plans where Axon/HCL would take a share of cost savings.
"We see an opportunity for a new company coming into the SAP services market and offering more transparency and more skin in the game," he said.
The new entity, the result of the largest overseas acquisition so far by an Indian IT outsource firm, would hit the market almost immediately.
"We do not plan to integrate Axon into HCL. This is a diverse merger. We have merged the HCL SAP practice under the Axon leadership, so it will roll from day one."
Mr Nayar said there were about 200 Axon employees in Australia and he expected that number to increase, despite the economic crisis.
About 80 per cent of Axon/HCL SAP work for Australian firms would be done in Australia and 20 per cent offshore.
He said Australia was HCL's fastest-growing market and it had had cut three major SAP deals here in the last two months. Mr Nayar would not give details of those.
While HCL had been in talks to buy Axon for months, its Bangalore-based rival Infosys offered $US753 million in cash for Axon a month before HCL went public with its bid in September.
The Infosys all-cash bid gave the deal the credibility HCL needed to get funding from banks that had been hesitant to support HCL.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
SAP Loses Bid to Dismiss Portions of Oracle Lawsuit
SAP AG, the world’s largest maker of business-management software, lost a bid to throw out six of Oracle Corp.’s 10 claims in a $1 billion copyright lawsuit accusing it of stealing software code.
U.S. District Court Judge Phyllis Hamilton in San Francisco today denied SAP’s request to dismiss claims for breach of contract, unjust enrichment and unfair competition, as well as other claims. SAP argued in court papers that some claims were preempted by federal copyright law.
Oracle, based in Redwood City, California, alleges SAP stole copyrighted software codes and support documents to bolster a service for customers that use Oracle software and to eventually convert them to SAP products.
Hamilton granted SAP’s request to dismiss copyright- infringement claims by two Oracle units. Oracle is the world’s second-largest software maker behind Microsoft Corp. It has said it may seek as much as $1 billion damages. A trial is scheduled for February.
SAP spokesman Saswato Das said in a phone interview that the company is “disappointed that the court did not accept all” of its positions. “We look forward to working with the court to achieve the proper resolution of this case,” he said.
SAP, based in Walldorf, Germany, said last year that it had made “inappropriate” downloads of Oracle’s support documents. The company denied it had access to Oracle’s intellectual property and said its Byran, Texas-based TomorrowNow unit had a right to make use of Oracle’s Customer Connection Web site and download support materials on behalf of its customers.
The case is Oracle Corp. v. SAP AG, 07-01658, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (San Francisco).
U.S. District Court Judge Phyllis Hamilton in San Francisco today denied SAP’s request to dismiss claims for breach of contract, unjust enrichment and unfair competition, as well as other claims. SAP argued in court papers that some claims were preempted by federal copyright law.
Oracle, based in Redwood City, California, alleges SAP stole copyrighted software codes and support documents to bolster a service for customers that use Oracle software and to eventually convert them to SAP products.
Hamilton granted SAP’s request to dismiss copyright- infringement claims by two Oracle units. Oracle is the world’s second-largest software maker behind Microsoft Corp. It has said it may seek as much as $1 billion damages. A trial is scheduled for February.
SAP spokesman Saswato Das said in a phone interview that the company is “disappointed that the court did not accept all” of its positions. “We look forward to working with the court to achieve the proper resolution of this case,” he said.
SAP, based in Walldorf, Germany, said last year that it had made “inappropriate” downloads of Oracle’s support documents. The company denied it had access to Oracle’s intellectual property and said its Byran, Texas-based TomorrowNow unit had a right to make use of Oracle’s Customer Connection Web site and download support materials on behalf of its customers.
The case is Oracle Corp. v. SAP AG, 07-01658, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (San Francisco).
SAP Business ByDesign Update
Fellow ZDNet blogger, Dennis Howlett, and I were treated to a briefing by Jeff Stiles of SAP yesterday. The subject was SAP’s Business ByDesign product line. Business ByDesign is SAP’s software as a service (SaaS) or on-demand offering for the SMB marketplace.
Business ByDesign was announced some time ago but SAP has restricted the rollout of the product line while the company works out some multi-tenancy issues and other performance/maintenance matters. Earlier this year, SAP decided to limit the rollout of this product line to six countries. It also decided that it wanted or needed to spend more time with the channel partners who would be implementing these solutions at clients.
Jeff told us that Business ByDesign will continue its limited rollout for 2009. His precise phrasing was “moderated go-to-market in 2009”. He added that the product line “needs to scale to volume”. He also indicated that new Feature Paks are planned. One, which was recently released a couple of months ago, includes new list processing as part of the in-core memory technology that SAP got with the Business Objects acquisition. That technology, T-Rex, will likely show up in more SAP products and in more applications as it provides material improvements in processing and inquiries.
Jeff also indicated that SAP is rolling product development under one person/organization for the first time since 1996. Development will have three groups within it: Large Enterprise (think R/3), SME and Netweaver.
When Dennis and I asked for customer counts on Business ByDesign, Jeff declined to give exact numbers but did indicate it is in the double digits. Jeff re-iterated that SAP is not interested in running up the customer count now but rather it is focused on creating happy, reference-able customers. We also learned that SAP is making progress on the users/blade front with the product now able to support over 100 users/blade.
Given the short time slot, we didn’t get a lot of time to plumb some of the other issues concerning this product line and SAP in general (e.g., the recent decision to raise maintenance rates for users (see think recent piece Dennis did on this subject). We did voice these concerns though:
- SAP may need to do a restart of its marketing efforts regarding Business ByDesign whenever it takes the governor off of its sales. The product line was announced with much fanfare but the slow, cautious rollout has certainly taken some of the pizzazz out of the hype.
- SAP is learning a lot about how tough their highly integrated applications are to update and maintain. Will SAP take the lessons it is learning about maintaining the Business ByDesign product line and start to apply these to other product lines like the Enterprise solutions?
Dennis and I should get more information early next year.
Business ByDesign was announced some time ago but SAP has restricted the rollout of the product line while the company works out some multi-tenancy issues and other performance/maintenance matters. Earlier this year, SAP decided to limit the rollout of this product line to six countries. It also decided that it wanted or needed to spend more time with the channel partners who would be implementing these solutions at clients.
Jeff told us that Business ByDesign will continue its limited rollout for 2009. His precise phrasing was “moderated go-to-market in 2009”. He added that the product line “needs to scale to volume”. He also indicated that new Feature Paks are planned. One, which was recently released a couple of months ago, includes new list processing as part of the in-core memory technology that SAP got with the Business Objects acquisition. That technology, T-Rex, will likely show up in more SAP products and in more applications as it provides material improvements in processing and inquiries.
Jeff also indicated that SAP is rolling product development under one person/organization for the first time since 1996. Development will have three groups within it: Large Enterprise (think R/3), SME and Netweaver.
When Dennis and I asked for customer counts on Business ByDesign, Jeff declined to give exact numbers but did indicate it is in the double digits. Jeff re-iterated that SAP is not interested in running up the customer count now but rather it is focused on creating happy, reference-able customers. We also learned that SAP is making progress on the users/blade front with the product now able to support over 100 users/blade.
Given the short time slot, we didn’t get a lot of time to plumb some of the other issues concerning this product line and SAP in general (e.g., the recent decision to raise maintenance rates for users (see think recent piece Dennis did on this subject). We did voice these concerns though:
- SAP may need to do a restart of its marketing efforts regarding Business ByDesign whenever it takes the governor off of its sales. The product line was announced with much fanfare but the slow, cautious rollout has certainly taken some of the pizzazz out of the hype.
- SAP is learning a lot about how tough their highly integrated applications are to update and maintain. Will SAP take the lessons it is learning about maintaining the Business ByDesign product line and start to apply these to other product lines like the Enterprise solutions?
Dennis and I should get more information early next year.
Judge Denies Most SAP Motions to Dismiss in Oracle Suit
A judge has rejected most of the motions made by SAP to dismiss parts of rival software maker Oracle's lawsuit against it, according to the decision filed Monday in U.S. District Court-California Northern District.
Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton upheld SAP's motion to dismiss copyright infringement claims by two Oracle entities, JD Edwards Europe Limited and Oracle Systems Corporation. But the judge denied SAP's motion to dismiss other claims, including breach of contract and unjust enrichment.
SAP had also argued that a number of state law claims -- including interference with prospective business advantage and unfair competition -- should be dismissed on grounds they were preempted by the U.S. Copyright Act.
Oracle asserted in turn "that each of the challenged claims has 'extra elements" making the claims 'not equivalent to' rights protected under the Act." Hamilton denied SAP's motion on those claims "except as to the extent that the state law claims are based on the alleged copyright infringement."
TomorrowNow, which SAP bought in 2005 and has since closed down, provided third-party support for Oracle applications, including PeopleSoft, J.D. Edwards and Siebel. Oracle filed suit in March 2007, claiming that TomorrowNow workers illegally downloaded material from Oracle's support systems and used them to court Oracle customers.
Oracle has also claimed that with the knowledge of SAP's executive board, SAP workers "made thousands of copies of Oracle's underlying software applications on its computer systems," and that SAP used Oracle's code for training, customer service and "generally to support a business model that was illegal to its core."
SAP has acknowledged that TomorrowNow staff members made "inappropriate downloads" from Oracle's Web site, but strongly rejected Oracle's claims of a broader pattern of wrongdoing.
In a statement, SAP said it was "gratified that the Court agreed with SAP's position regarding the copyright claims that were dismissed" and though disappointed it did not prevail on all counts, looks forward to " working with the Court to achieve the proper resolution of this case."
An Oracle spokeswoman declined comment on Tuesday.
SAP's response to Oracle's third amended complaint in the case is due by Dec. 30. A trial date has been set for February 2010.
SAP Project Halted After Shareholder Pressure
The weak economy has companies of all sizes and types moving to cut costs, and for U.S. bedding manufacturer Select Comfort, those choices have included a decision to halt all work associated with a wide-ranging SAP ERP (enterprise resource planning) project. And documents on file with a government regulator indicate that shareholder pressure may have contributed to the move.
Select Comfort, maker of the "Sleep Number" bed, will also cut 22 percent of its workforce, or about 120 jobs, and combined with other actions under consideration, the moves will save the Minneapolis, Minnesota, company about US$15 million each year, according to a statement.
A company spokeswoman declined to comment further on Wednesday.
Documents on file with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission show that Select Comfort planned to implement an integrated suite of SAP applications, including modules for ERP, CRM (customer relationship management), SCM (supply chain management) and many others. The company initially expected the project would be complete during the first half of its fiscal 2008.
"We believe this SAP-based IT architecture ... will provide greater flexibility and functionality for our growing and evolving business model and be less expensive to maintain over the long-term," one filing states in part.
But other SEC filings show that Select Comfort officials had for months been under pressure by a shareholder, the Clinton Group, to spike the project.
In letters to Select Comfort's board, the Clinton Group characterizes the ERP implementation as significantly over budget and behind schedule, and the company's leadership as reckless.
"We believe that spending on the SAP system installation should be deferred until an expeditious detailed review of information technology needs is undertaken and completed by an independent consultant, particularly in light of the departure of the Company's Chief Information Officer," states a letter dated March 6.
The Clinton Group also said Select Comfort spent $12 million on the implementation in 2007 and "anticipates spending another $8 million in 2008, assuming no additional costs. ... It is difficult for us to envision, given the size of the Company, that the Company could ever achieve cost savings to justify such a large expense."
"Select Comfort's plan to continue with the implementation using internal resources that have at best limited experience implementing a new enterprise software system is indicative of extremely poor judgment by management," states a letter sent by the Clinton Group in June. "Select Comfort's management has never articulated why it needs to spend tens of millions of dollars on implementing an enterprise software system, and given Select Comfort's financial performance the implementation should cease immediately."
While Select Comfort's statement did not rule out the possibility it would revive the implementation, unfinished ERP projects are "more common than you might think and more common than [they] should be," said Frank Scavo, managing partner of Strativa, an IT consulting firm in Irvine, California.
"Ceasing an implementation midstream is certainly not a pleasant decision, because assuming that at some point, this organization is going to restart the implementation, they're going to have additional costs," Scavo said.
For example, a company might have to retrain workers on processes they're already been taught, and any implementation partners being used may not be available. "But sometimes financial realities are what they are, and companies need to make a decision," he said.
Another industry observer said Wednesday that overall, the economy is undoubtedly having some chilling effect on ERP projects.
"A number of our companies are in the process of conserving cash," Forrester Research analyst Ray Wang said via e-mail Wednesday. "For some, this means the delay on implementing certain modules, reducing costs in maintenance, and also renegotiating implementation contracts."
Customers do have ways to hedge their bets during the planning stages of a project, Wang said. "If you design your contract in phases, you have the opportunity to put in clauses around phase completion and kick-off. This is more a system integrator issue than a software vendor issue.
"We typically tell customers it's best to budget for a project in good and bad times in order to achieve the best ROI," Wang added. "Delays do impact the ROI. However, when cash is king, you have to protect cash flow, and that will win out."
One thing financially strapped software customers don't tend to have is the opportunity to return the product and get their money back, according to Scavo.
"The only time I've seen that is if there's a non-performance issue or breach of contract on the part of the vendor," he said. "The customer would not be entitled to get money back just because they can't afford the system anymore."
Moreover, licensing costs don't even represent the bulk of software costs; implementation and support fees rack up a bigger percentage, Scavo noted. "There's probably more money sitting ahead of [Select Comfort] than there is behind them."
It is not SAP's place to comment on the financial well-being of a particular customer, but Select Comfort's decision appears to be an anomaly, according to SAP spokeswoman Natalie Fine.
"We fully recognize these are truly critical times for our customers ... [but] what we're seeing is this is not a trend. SAP projects are continuing to go forward," she said. "Our experience is that even in this macro environment, companies are standing firm."
Like other vendors, SAP has announced ways it is trying to help customers weather economic difficulties, such as zero-percent financing offers.
Select Comfort, maker of the "Sleep Number" bed, will also cut 22 percent of its workforce, or about 120 jobs, and combined with other actions under consideration, the moves will save the Minneapolis, Minnesota, company about US$15 million each year, according to a statement.
A company spokeswoman declined to comment further on Wednesday.
Documents on file with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission show that Select Comfort planned to implement an integrated suite of SAP applications, including modules for ERP, CRM (customer relationship management), SCM (supply chain management) and many others. The company initially expected the project would be complete during the first half of its fiscal 2008.
"We believe this SAP-based IT architecture ... will provide greater flexibility and functionality for our growing and evolving business model and be less expensive to maintain over the long-term," one filing states in part.
But other SEC filings show that Select Comfort officials had for months been under pressure by a shareholder, the Clinton Group, to spike the project.
In letters to Select Comfort's board, the Clinton Group characterizes the ERP implementation as significantly over budget and behind schedule, and the company's leadership as reckless.
"We believe that spending on the SAP system installation should be deferred until an expeditious detailed review of information technology needs is undertaken and completed by an independent consultant, particularly in light of the departure of the Company's Chief Information Officer," states a letter dated March 6.
The Clinton Group also said Select Comfort spent $12 million on the implementation in 2007 and "anticipates spending another $8 million in 2008, assuming no additional costs. ... It is difficult for us to envision, given the size of the Company, that the Company could ever achieve cost savings to justify such a large expense."
"Select Comfort's plan to continue with the implementation using internal resources that have at best limited experience implementing a new enterprise software system is indicative of extremely poor judgment by management," states a letter sent by the Clinton Group in June. "Select Comfort's management has never articulated why it needs to spend tens of millions of dollars on implementing an enterprise software system, and given Select Comfort's financial performance the implementation should cease immediately."
While Select Comfort's statement did not rule out the possibility it would revive the implementation, unfinished ERP projects are "more common than you might think and more common than [they] should be," said Frank Scavo, managing partner of Strativa, an IT consulting firm in Irvine, California.
"Ceasing an implementation midstream is certainly not a pleasant decision, because assuming that at some point, this organization is going to restart the implementation, they're going to have additional costs," Scavo said.
For example, a company might have to retrain workers on processes they're already been taught, and any implementation partners being used may not be available. "But sometimes financial realities are what they are, and companies need to make a decision," he said.
Another industry observer said Wednesday that overall, the economy is undoubtedly having some chilling effect on ERP projects.
"A number of our companies are in the process of conserving cash," Forrester Research analyst Ray Wang said via e-mail Wednesday. "For some, this means the delay on implementing certain modules, reducing costs in maintenance, and also renegotiating implementation contracts."
Customers do have ways to hedge their bets during the planning stages of a project, Wang said. "If you design your contract in phases, you have the opportunity to put in clauses around phase completion and kick-off. This is more a system integrator issue than a software vendor issue.
"We typically tell customers it's best to budget for a project in good and bad times in order to achieve the best ROI," Wang added. "Delays do impact the ROI. However, when cash is king, you have to protect cash flow, and that will win out."
One thing financially strapped software customers don't tend to have is the opportunity to return the product and get their money back, according to Scavo.
"The only time I've seen that is if there's a non-performance issue or breach of contract on the part of the vendor," he said. "The customer would not be entitled to get money back just because they can't afford the system anymore."
Moreover, licensing costs don't even represent the bulk of software costs; implementation and support fees rack up a bigger percentage, Scavo noted. "There's probably more money sitting ahead of [Select Comfort] than there is behind them."
It is not SAP's place to comment on the financial well-being of a particular customer, but Select Comfort's decision appears to be an anomaly, according to SAP spokeswoman Natalie Fine.
"We fully recognize these are truly critical times for our customers ... [but] what we're seeing is this is not a trend. SAP projects are continuing to go forward," she said. "Our experience is that even in this macro environment, companies are standing firm."
Like other vendors, SAP has announced ways it is trying to help customers weather economic difficulties, such as zero-percent financing offers.
SAP ERP and MetroSouth Medical Center
SAP Public Services, Inc., a subsidiary of SAP AG (NYSE: SAP), today announced that MetroSouth Medical Center has selected and implemented SAP® solutions to more effectively drive new levels of performance across its healthcare system in the areas of financials and procurement through financial and supply chain management applications from SAP. MetroSouth, a new medical center formed in July 2008, chose SAP enterprise applications to help achieving newly established strategic objectives to streamline business processes, increase efficiency and reduce costs.
"In today's ever-changing healthcare business environment, the ability to confidently make decisions is critical," said John Ulett, chief information officer, MetroSouth Medical Center. "Information is what drives those decisions, and automation across operations is essential to ensure that information is delivered consistently. We chose SAP after a thorough discovery process because we felt they achieved the right balance between proven solutions and innovative technological advancement and stability for our needs."
"With greater demand for healthcare reform in the United States, providers need to adapt their services and business processes to control costs and meet regulatory and patient demands," said David Corbett, vice president, U.S. Healthcare, SAP. "MetroSouth Medical Center made the decision to not just implement business software, but to invest in a business process platform that delivers the agility to retain and manage the costs associated with critical talent and better management of supply chain and financial resources, while also allowing the Center to develop new forms of collaboration with partners and deliver innovative care-putting them in the company of leading providers of care in the country."
About SAP® for Public Sector
SAP® for Public Sector is an industry-specific solution portfolio combining SAP® Business Suite applications with tailored functionality to meet the unique demands of central, federal, state and local governments and other public organizations. SAP for Public Sector provides a comprehensive set of tools to help organizations optimize limited resources and support collaborative outcomes between two or more government agencies, to help improve economic viability and increase process efficiency and transparency while better serving the needs of the public. The portfolio is based on the open and flexible SAP NetWeaver® technology platform, which leverages service-oriented architecture (SOA) to enable government and non-government agencies to work seamlessly with one another by integrating government business processes, including public sector accounting, procurement, grants management, tax and revenue management, case management, constituent services, records management, social services and public security. Additional information is available at http://www.sap.com/publicsector/.
About SAP
SAP is the world's leading provider of business software (*), offering applications and services that enable companies of all sizes and in more than 25 industries to become best-run businesses. With approximately 76,000 customers (includes customers from the acquisition of Business Objects) in over 120 countries, the company is listed on several exchanges, including the Frankfurt stock exchange and NYSE, under the symbol "SAP." (For more information, visit www.sap.com)
(*) SAP defines business software as comprising enterprise resource planning and related applications.
Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "intend," "may," "plan," "project," "predict," "should" and "will" and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. The factors that could affect SAP's future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including SAP's most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.
"In today's ever-changing healthcare business environment, the ability to confidently make decisions is critical," said John Ulett, chief information officer, MetroSouth Medical Center. "Information is what drives those decisions, and automation across operations is essential to ensure that information is delivered consistently. We chose SAP after a thorough discovery process because we felt they achieved the right balance between proven solutions and innovative technological advancement and stability for our needs."
"With greater demand for healthcare reform in the United States, providers need to adapt their services and business processes to control costs and meet regulatory and patient demands," said David Corbett, vice president, U.S. Healthcare, SAP. "MetroSouth Medical Center made the decision to not just implement business software, but to invest in a business process platform that delivers the agility to retain and manage the costs associated with critical talent and better management of supply chain and financial resources, while also allowing the Center to develop new forms of collaboration with partners and deliver innovative care-putting them in the company of leading providers of care in the country."
About SAP® for Public Sector
SAP® for Public Sector is an industry-specific solution portfolio combining SAP® Business Suite applications with tailored functionality to meet the unique demands of central, federal, state and local governments and other public organizations. SAP for Public Sector provides a comprehensive set of tools to help organizations optimize limited resources and support collaborative outcomes between two or more government agencies, to help improve economic viability and increase process efficiency and transparency while better serving the needs of the public. The portfolio is based on the open and flexible SAP NetWeaver® technology platform, which leverages service-oriented architecture (SOA) to enable government and non-government agencies to work seamlessly with one another by integrating government business processes, including public sector accounting, procurement, grants management, tax and revenue management, case management, constituent services, records management, social services and public security. Additional information is available at http://www.sap.com/publicsector/.
About SAP
SAP is the world's leading provider of business software (*), offering applications and services that enable companies of all sizes and in more than 25 industries to become best-run businesses. With approximately 76,000 customers (includes customers from the acquisition of Business Objects) in over 120 countries, the company is listed on several exchanges, including the Frankfurt stock exchange and NYSE, under the symbol "SAP." (For more information, visit www.sap.com)
(*) SAP defines business software as comprising enterprise resource planning and related applications.
Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "intend," "may," "plan," "project," "predict," "should" and "will" and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. The factors that could affect SAP's future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including SAP's most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.
SAP ERP system and Fujitsu Siemens Computers
Offering Provides Midsize Customers Integrated Business Applications on Stable Hardware at Clearly-Defined Price Points
WALLDORF, Germany - December 17, 2008 - SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) and Fujitsu Siemens Computers today announced that Fujitsu Siemens Computers is joining the SAP® Business All-in-One fast-start program, putting midsize companies on the fast track to the adoption of specialized business software. Customers will receive SAP® Business All-in-One solutions preinstalled on the Fujitsu Siemens Computers hardware. This combination provides midsized companies a cost-effective solution, helping them to centralize and consolidate their information technology (IT) thereby being enabled to gain operational efficiency. Global in scope, the agreement will be implemented on a country-by-country basis via qualified Fujitsu Siemens Computers partners and SAP value-added resellers throughout 2009.
The offering will include enhanced set of functionality for midsize companies in the manufacturing, wholesale and services industries. Pre-tested and pre-configured, the offering can be quickly installed and ready-to-use. For SAP and Fujitsu Siemens Computers joint customers, this means faster time to value and the ability to decrease the total cost of ownership (TCO). Customers will receive the PRIMERGY servers from Fujitsu Siemens Computers, which will be pre-installed with SAP Business All-in-One solutions and the SAP® MaxDBTM database running on the SUSE Enterprise Linux operating system from Novell. The software runs on PRIMERGY RX300 S4 racks as test and production servers. Optionally available are PRIMERGY RX100 S5 models as infrastructure servers and back-up with the FibreCAT TX08 tape device.
Joining the SAP Business-All-in-One fast-start program is the latest collaboration in a 30-year history between SAP and Fujitsu Siemens Computers.
“Although the benefits from an integrated system are clear to any midsize company, many companies have been reluctant to move from proprietary solutions managing single functions because of the perceived complexity and timescale of migration,” said Rolf Strotmann, vice president, Software and Solution Business, Fujitsu Siemens Computers. “Our joint modular approach is focused on problem-solving by removing the obstacles and allowing businesses to quickly and easily integrate and reap the rewards from an integrated system focused on the functionality they need.”
Novell’s vice president and general manager of Global Strategic Alliances, Susan Heystee comments, “With SUSE Linux Enterprise, midsize customers are able to optimize both their SAP functionality and their infrastructure with a fully integrated and validated technology stack that reduces complexity, increases manageability and lowers the total cost of ownership. It is the open platform of choice.”
“Adding Fujitsu Siemens Computers to our fast-start program will provide yet another opportunity for midsized customers to build an IT environment best suited for their business needs,” said Robert Vetter, head of Global Business Development, SAP. “Our shared customers will have access to a fully-tested, pre-configured business offering that has been designed for rapid and seamless deployment, enabling them take advantage of advanced business tools at an effective cost.”
About Fujitsu Siemens Computers:
Fujitsu Siemens Computers is the leading European IT Infrastructure Provider. By delivering Infrastructure products, solutions and services as well as Managed Infrastructure or a combination of these offerings, our customers have the freedom to choose whatever IT infrastructure fits best to their specific needs. Fujitsu Siemens Computers is present in all key markets in Europe, Africa and the Middle East serving large, small or medium-sized companies or private consumers, while its Infrastructure Services division is active in 170 countries. The company benefits from the global cooperation and innovation power of both its shareholders, Fujitsu Ltd. and Siemens AG.
Fujitsu Siemens Computers is one of the pioneers in offering a complete range of environmentally conscious products and in using environmentally friendly technologies and processes throughout the entire lifecycle of a product.
More information about Fujitsu Siemens Computers is at: http://www.fujitsu-siemens.com
Additional information about social responsibility is at: http://www.fujitsu-siemens.de/aboutus/sor/index.html.
About SAP® Solutions for Small Businesses and Midsize Companies
With more than 35,600 small and midsize customers worldwide, SAP is a leading provider of business applications and an established and highly successful player in the small and midsize enterprise (SME) market. SAP offers a broad and innovative solution portfolio for small businesses and midsize companies to meet the heterogeneous demands of SME customers. SAP solutions for small businesses and midsize companies include SAP® Business One, a single integrated application for successfully managing small businesses; SAP® Business ByDesign™, the software industry’s most complete, integrated and adaptable on-demand solution for midsize companies; and SAP® Business All-in-One, a customizable and extensible solution for midsize companies with deep industry best practices built in. Sold, implemented and maintained through SAP and an expanding network of qualified partners, all of the solutions are competitively priced, easy and quick to implement and scalable to customers’ growing business needs. The SAP solutions specifically designed for SMEs help enable small businesses and midsize companies to lower operating costs, improve operational excellence, gain better business insight and control, and grow their businesses flexibly. Additional information is available at www.sap.com/solutions/sme.
About SAP
SAP is the world’s leading provider of business software(*), offering applications and services that enable companies of all sizes and in more than 25 industries to become best-run businesses. With approximately 76,000 customers (includes customers from the acquisition of Business Objects) in over 120 countries, the company is listed on several exchanges, including the Frankfurt stock exchange and NYSE, under the symbol “SAP.” (For more information, visit www.sap.com)
(*) SAP defines business software as comprising enterprise resource planning and related applications.
Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “predict,” “should” and “will” and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. The factors that could affect SAP's future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including SAP's most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.
Copyright © 2008 SAP AG. All rights reserved.
SAP, R/3, mySAP, mySAP.com, xApps, xApp, SAP NetWeaver and other SAP products and services mentioned herein as well as their respective logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP AG in Germany and in several other countries all over the world. All other product and service names mentioned are the trademarks of their respective companies. Data contained in this document serve informational purposes only. National product specifications may vary.
Note to editors:
To view video stories on diverse topics, visit www.sap-tv.com. From this site, you also can embed videos into your own Web pages, share video via email links and subscribe to RSS feeds from SAP TV. No registration is required. To preview and request broadcast-standard video digitally or by tape, log on to www.thenewsmarket.com/sap, where registration and video is free to the media.
WALLDORF, Germany - December 17, 2008 - SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) and Fujitsu Siemens Computers today announced that Fujitsu Siemens Computers is joining the SAP® Business All-in-One fast-start program, putting midsize companies on the fast track to the adoption of specialized business software. Customers will receive SAP® Business All-in-One solutions preinstalled on the Fujitsu Siemens Computers hardware. This combination provides midsized companies a cost-effective solution, helping them to centralize and consolidate their information technology (IT) thereby being enabled to gain operational efficiency. Global in scope, the agreement will be implemented on a country-by-country basis via qualified Fujitsu Siemens Computers partners and SAP value-added resellers throughout 2009.
The offering will include enhanced set of functionality for midsize companies in the manufacturing, wholesale and services industries. Pre-tested and pre-configured, the offering can be quickly installed and ready-to-use. For SAP and Fujitsu Siemens Computers joint customers, this means faster time to value and the ability to decrease the total cost of ownership (TCO). Customers will receive the PRIMERGY servers from Fujitsu Siemens Computers, which will be pre-installed with SAP Business All-in-One solutions and the SAP® MaxDBTM database running on the SUSE Enterprise Linux operating system from Novell. The software runs on PRIMERGY RX300 S4 racks as test and production servers. Optionally available are PRIMERGY RX100 S5 models as infrastructure servers and back-up with the FibreCAT TX08 tape device.
Joining the SAP Business-All-in-One fast-start program is the latest collaboration in a 30-year history between SAP and Fujitsu Siemens Computers.
“Although the benefits from an integrated system are clear to any midsize company, many companies have been reluctant to move from proprietary solutions managing single functions because of the perceived complexity and timescale of migration,” said Rolf Strotmann, vice president, Software and Solution Business, Fujitsu Siemens Computers. “Our joint modular approach is focused on problem-solving by removing the obstacles and allowing businesses to quickly and easily integrate and reap the rewards from an integrated system focused on the functionality they need.”
Novell’s vice president and general manager of Global Strategic Alliances, Susan Heystee comments, “With SUSE Linux Enterprise, midsize customers are able to optimize both their SAP functionality and their infrastructure with a fully integrated and validated technology stack that reduces complexity, increases manageability and lowers the total cost of ownership. It is the open platform of choice.”
“Adding Fujitsu Siemens Computers to our fast-start program will provide yet another opportunity for midsized customers to build an IT environment best suited for their business needs,” said Robert Vetter, head of Global Business Development, SAP. “Our shared customers will have access to a fully-tested, pre-configured business offering that has been designed for rapid and seamless deployment, enabling them take advantage of advanced business tools at an effective cost.”
About Fujitsu Siemens Computers:
Fujitsu Siemens Computers is the leading European IT Infrastructure Provider. By delivering Infrastructure products, solutions and services as well as Managed Infrastructure or a combination of these offerings, our customers have the freedom to choose whatever IT infrastructure fits best to their specific needs. Fujitsu Siemens Computers is present in all key markets in Europe, Africa and the Middle East serving large, small or medium-sized companies or private consumers, while its Infrastructure Services division is active in 170 countries. The company benefits from the global cooperation and innovation power of both its shareholders, Fujitsu Ltd. and Siemens AG.
Fujitsu Siemens Computers is one of the pioneers in offering a complete range of environmentally conscious products and in using environmentally friendly technologies and processes throughout the entire lifecycle of a product.
More information about Fujitsu Siemens Computers is at: http://www.fujitsu-siemens.com
Additional information about social responsibility is at: http://www.fujitsu-siemens.de/aboutus/sor/index.html.
About SAP® Solutions for Small Businesses and Midsize Companies
With more than 35,600 small and midsize customers worldwide, SAP is a leading provider of business applications and an established and highly successful player in the small and midsize enterprise (SME) market. SAP offers a broad and innovative solution portfolio for small businesses and midsize companies to meet the heterogeneous demands of SME customers. SAP solutions for small businesses and midsize companies include SAP® Business One, a single integrated application for successfully managing small businesses; SAP® Business ByDesign™, the software industry’s most complete, integrated and adaptable on-demand solution for midsize companies; and SAP® Business All-in-One, a customizable and extensible solution for midsize companies with deep industry best practices built in. Sold, implemented and maintained through SAP and an expanding network of qualified partners, all of the solutions are competitively priced, easy and quick to implement and scalable to customers’ growing business needs. The SAP solutions specifically designed for SMEs help enable small businesses and midsize companies to lower operating costs, improve operational excellence, gain better business insight and control, and grow their businesses flexibly. Additional information is available at www.sap.com/solutions/sme.
About SAP
SAP is the world’s leading provider of business software(*), offering applications and services that enable companies of all sizes and in more than 25 industries to become best-run businesses. With approximately 76,000 customers (includes customers from the acquisition of Business Objects) in over 120 countries, the company is listed on several exchanges, including the Frankfurt stock exchange and NYSE, under the symbol “SAP.” (For more information, visit www.sap.com)
(*) SAP defines business software as comprising enterprise resource planning and related applications.
Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “predict,” “should” and “will” and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. The factors that could affect SAP's future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including SAP's most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.
Copyright © 2008 SAP AG. All rights reserved.
SAP, R/3, mySAP, mySAP.com, xApps, xApp, SAP NetWeaver and other SAP products and services mentioned herein as well as their respective logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP AG in Germany and in several other countries all over the world. All other product and service names mentioned are the trademarks of their respective companies. Data contained in this document serve informational purposes only. National product specifications may vary.
Note to editors:
To view video stories on diverse topics, visit www.sap-tv.com. From this site, you also can embed videos into your own Web pages, share video via email links and subscribe to RSS feeds from SAP TV. No registration is required. To preview and request broadcast-standard video digitally or by tape, log on to www.thenewsmarket.com/sap, where registration and video is free to the media.
Sap Company
SAP
is the largest European software enterprise and the third largest in the world, with headquarters in Walldorf, Germany.[2] It is best known for its SAP ERP Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software.
SAP was founded in the year 1972 as Systemanalyse und Programmentwicklung ("System Analysis and Program Development")[3] by five former IBM engineers in Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg (Dietmar Hopp, Hans-Werner Hector, Hasso Plattner, Klaus E. Tschira, and Claus Wellenreuther).[4]
As part of the Xerox exit strategy from the computer industry, Xerox retained IBM to migrate their business systems to IBM technology. As part of IBM's compensation for the migration, IBM acquired the SDS/SAPE software, reportedly for a contract credit of $80,000. The SAPE software was given by IBM to the founding ex-IBM employees in exchange for founding stock provided to IBM, reportedly 8%. It may be noted that, at the time they left IBM, the ex-employees were quite senior engineers in IBM Germany rather than founding engineers in the sense of Hewlett-Packard's founders. ICI was SAPs first ever Customer in Germany in 1972.
SAP BABOONCH is now available as an ERP BOONCH Suite
The acronym was later changed to stand for Systeme, Anwendungen und Produkte in der Datenverarbeitung ("Systems, Applications and Products in Data Processing").
In 1976 "SAP GmbH" was founded and the following year it moved headquarters to Walldorf. SAP AG became the company's official name after the 2005 annual general meeting (AG is short for Aktiengesellschaft).
In August 1988, SAP GmbH transferred into SAP AG (a corporation by German law), and public trading started November 4. Shares are listed on the Frankfurt and Stuttgart stock exchange.[4]
Four of the founding members -- Hopp, Plattner, Tschira and Hector -- form the executive board. In 1995, SAP was included in the German stock index DAX. On 22 September 2003, SAP was included in the Dow Jones STOXX 50.[5] In 1991, Prof. Dr. Henning Kagermann joined the board; Dr. Peter Zencke became a board member in 1993.[6] Claus Heinrich,[7] and Gerhard Oswald [8] have been members of the SAP Executive Board since 1996. Two years later, in 1998, the first change at the helm took place. Dietmar Hopp and Klaus Tschira moved to the supervisory board and Dietmar Hopp was appointed Chairman of the supervisory board. Henning Kagermann was appointed as Co-Chairman and CEO of SAP next to Hasso Plattner. Werner Brandt joined SAP in 2001 as a member of the SAP Executive Board and Chief Financial Officer.[9] Léo Apotheker has been a member of the SAP Executive Board and president of Global Customer Solutions & Operations since 2002, was appointed Deputy CEO in 2007, and then became co-CEO alongside Kagermann in 2008.
Henning Kagermann became the sole CEO of SAP in 2003.[10] In February 2007 his contract was extended until 2009. After continuous disputes over the responsibility of the development organization, Shai Agassi, a member of the executive board who had been named as a potential successor to Kagermann, left the organization.[11] In April 2008, along with the announcement of Leo Apotheker as co-CEO, the SAP supervisory board also appointed to the SAP Executive Board three new members, effective 1 July 2008: Corporate Officers Erwin Gunst, Bill McDermott and Jim Hagemann Snabe.
SAP is the world's second largest business software company and the third-largest independent software provider in terms of revenues.[14] It operates in three geographic regions – EMEA, which represents Europe, Middle East and Africa; the Americas (SAP America, headquartered in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania), which represents both North America and Latin America; and Asia Pacific Japan (APJ), which represents Japan, Australia, India and parts of Asia. In addition, SAP operates a network of 115 subsidiaries, and has R&D facilities around the globe in Germany, North America, Canada, China, Hungary, India, Israel and Bulgaria.
SAP focuses on six industry sectors: process industries, discrete industries, consumer industries, service industries, financial services, and public services.[15] It offers more than 25 industry solution portfolios for large enterprises[16] and more than 550 micro-vertical solutions for midsize companies and small businesses.
Functional units of SAP are split across different organizational units for R&D needs, field activities and customer support. SAP Labs are mainly responsible for product development where as the field organizations spread across each country are responsible for field activities such Sales, Marketing, Consulting etc. Head office located in SAP AG is responsible for overall management as well as core Engineering activities related to Product Development. SAP customer support, also called Active Global Support (AGS) is a global organization to provide support to SAP customers worldwide.
[edit] SAP Labs
SAP Labs is the research and development organization of the parent company. SAP has its development organization spread across the globe. Many, but not all, labs locations are hosting SAP Research groups.
Prominent labs are located in Palo Alto, USA; Bangalore, Hyderabad and Gurgaon India; Ra'anana and Karmiel, Israel; Montreal, Canada and Shanghai, China. SAP Labs located in Bangalore is the largest development unit in terms of number of employees outside the SAP headquarters located in Walldorf, Germany.Other SAP Labs locations include France, Bulgaria and Hungary.
Each SAP Lab has prominent area of expertise and focus. SAP Labs in Sofia, Bulgaria for example specializes in development of Java based SAP software products. Whereas, SAP Labs in U.S. is famous for its focus on innovation and research. SAP Labs India contributes to all areas of the SAP product value chain- Research & Breakthrough Innovation, Product Development, Global Services & Support and Customer Solutions & Operations.
is the largest European software enterprise and the third largest in the world, with headquarters in Walldorf, Germany.[2] It is best known for its SAP ERP Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software.
SAP was founded in the year 1972 as Systemanalyse und Programmentwicklung ("System Analysis and Program Development")[3] by five former IBM engineers in Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg (Dietmar Hopp, Hans-Werner Hector, Hasso Plattner, Klaus E. Tschira, and Claus Wellenreuther).[4]
As part of the Xerox exit strategy from the computer industry, Xerox retained IBM to migrate their business systems to IBM technology. As part of IBM's compensation for the migration, IBM acquired the SDS/SAPE software, reportedly for a contract credit of $80,000. The SAPE software was given by IBM to the founding ex-IBM employees in exchange for founding stock provided to IBM, reportedly 8%. It may be noted that, at the time they left IBM, the ex-employees were quite senior engineers in IBM Germany rather than founding engineers in the sense of Hewlett-Packard's founders. ICI was SAPs first ever Customer in Germany in 1972.
SAP BABOONCH is now available as an ERP BOONCH Suite
The acronym was later changed to stand for Systeme, Anwendungen und Produkte in der Datenverarbeitung ("Systems, Applications and Products in Data Processing").
In 1976 "SAP GmbH" was founded and the following year it moved headquarters to Walldorf. SAP AG became the company's official name after the 2005 annual general meeting (AG is short for Aktiengesellschaft).
In August 1988, SAP GmbH transferred into SAP AG (a corporation by German law), and public trading started November 4. Shares are listed on the Frankfurt and Stuttgart stock exchange.[4]
Four of the founding members -- Hopp, Plattner, Tschira and Hector -- form the executive board. In 1995, SAP was included in the German stock index DAX. On 22 September 2003, SAP was included in the Dow Jones STOXX 50.[5] In 1991, Prof. Dr. Henning Kagermann joined the board; Dr. Peter Zencke became a board member in 1993.[6] Claus Heinrich,[7] and Gerhard Oswald [8] have been members of the SAP Executive Board since 1996. Two years later, in 1998, the first change at the helm took place. Dietmar Hopp and Klaus Tschira moved to the supervisory board and Dietmar Hopp was appointed Chairman of the supervisory board. Henning Kagermann was appointed as Co-Chairman and CEO of SAP next to Hasso Plattner. Werner Brandt joined SAP in 2001 as a member of the SAP Executive Board and Chief Financial Officer.[9] Léo Apotheker has been a member of the SAP Executive Board and president of Global Customer Solutions & Operations since 2002, was appointed Deputy CEO in 2007, and then became co-CEO alongside Kagermann in 2008.
Henning Kagermann became the sole CEO of SAP in 2003.[10] In February 2007 his contract was extended until 2009. After continuous disputes over the responsibility of the development organization, Shai Agassi, a member of the executive board who had been named as a potential successor to Kagermann, left the organization.[11] In April 2008, along with the announcement of Leo Apotheker as co-CEO, the SAP supervisory board also appointed to the SAP Executive Board three new members, effective 1 July 2008: Corporate Officers Erwin Gunst, Bill McDermott and Jim Hagemann Snabe.
SAP is the world's second largest business software company and the third-largest independent software provider in terms of revenues.[14] It operates in three geographic regions – EMEA, which represents Europe, Middle East and Africa; the Americas (SAP America, headquartered in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania), which represents both North America and Latin America; and Asia Pacific Japan (APJ), which represents Japan, Australia, India and parts of Asia. In addition, SAP operates a network of 115 subsidiaries, and has R&D facilities around the globe in Germany, North America, Canada, China, Hungary, India, Israel and Bulgaria.
SAP focuses on six industry sectors: process industries, discrete industries, consumer industries, service industries, financial services, and public services.[15] It offers more than 25 industry solution portfolios for large enterprises[16] and more than 550 micro-vertical solutions for midsize companies and small businesses.
Functional units of SAP are split across different organizational units for R&D needs, field activities and customer support. SAP Labs are mainly responsible for product development where as the field organizations spread across each country are responsible for field activities such Sales, Marketing, Consulting etc. Head office located in SAP AG is responsible for overall management as well as core Engineering activities related to Product Development. SAP customer support, also called Active Global Support (AGS) is a global organization to provide support to SAP customers worldwide.
[edit] SAP Labs
SAP Labs is the research and development organization of the parent company. SAP has its development organization spread across the globe. Many, but not all, labs locations are hosting SAP Research groups.
Prominent labs are located in Palo Alto, USA; Bangalore, Hyderabad and Gurgaon India; Ra'anana and Karmiel, Israel; Montreal, Canada and Shanghai, China. SAP Labs located in Bangalore is the largest development unit in terms of number of employees outside the SAP headquarters located in Walldorf, Germany.Other SAP Labs locations include France, Bulgaria and Hungary.
Each SAP Lab has prominent area of expertise and focus. SAP Labs in Sofia, Bulgaria for example specializes in development of Java based SAP software products. Whereas, SAP Labs in U.S. is famous for its focus on innovation and research. SAP Labs India contributes to all areas of the SAP product value chain- Research & Breakthrough Innovation, Product Development, Global Services & Support and Customer Solutions & Operations.
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