InformationWeek: The Business Value of Technology

Due to ship early in the fourth quarter, Adaptive Server Enterprise 12.0 will offer Extensible Markup Language and native Java support. Sybase's core database system has lagged behind other vendors' products in providing these capabilities. ASE 12.0 will also include a Java virtual machine and Java-SQL functions, new high-availability and failover features, and Web transaction-management capabilities. Pricing hasn't been set.

Sybase's enterprise information portal project, called Open Door, includes a system framework to help companies build business-to-business portals that integrate applications, data, and content for employees and customers. The framework and associated development tools from Sybase and vendor partners will be available in beta form by year's end, says strategic marketing director James Griffin. By supporting XML and Java, ASE 12.0 and Sybase's new Enterprise Event Broker middleware are capable of being used within an enterprise information portal system, Sybase says.

"It's a nice cohesive strategy for them, but they do have a lot of work to do to flesh out this framework," says Giga Information Group analyst Terilyn Palanca. She cites the lack of personalization capabilities as an example of the gaps that Sybase needs to fill.

Development Boost
Customers are looking forward to the offerings. The portal features "will speed up the development of E-commerce apps" at United Grain Growers Ltd., says systems development manager Terence Light. In addition, Light expects the high-availability capabilities in ASE 12.0 to be critical for the Winnipeg, Manitoba, agricultural products company, which now runs Sybase 11.5.1.

Sybase also unveiled e-Map to e-Business, a collection of implementation methodologies, consulting services, and courses for adapting IT infrastructures for E-business. The first services, available now, will help users deploy applications based on Sybase's PowerBuilder development toolset on the Web. A package for building high-availability E-business apps is due by year's end. Pricing depends on the mix of services.

Sybase is hoping the products and services jump-start its sales growth. While profitable during the last year, it reported a disquieting decline in sales in its second fiscal quarter ended June 30. "The task at hand is to really gain momentum," president and CEO John Chen said in a teleconference last week. Chen said he expects revenue growth of 10% to 15% in 2000.