Article Abstract:
Informix will acquire Illustra Information Technologies in a stock deal worth as much as $386 million, as Informix seeks a strong position in the object-relational data base management system (ORDBMS) market. Illustra is the principle supplier of ORDBMS products, while Informix prior to the acquisition was the third-largest independent DBMS vendor. The growth of the Internet and multimedia applications has created complex data types that typical DBMSs cannot handle. Informix was working on its own ORDBMS technology internally, but customers were unable to wait for it to come to market and were turning to Illustra products. Illustra Pres and CEO Richard Williams believes the merger will prove successful because employees from both companies had worked with each other at IBM. Informix stock fell $1.125 because the deal calls for the issuance of new stock, which will weaken existing shareholders' positions, but analysts are generally in favor of the merger.
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Article Abstract:
Sybase's shares declined by 25% after the company reported its 4th qtr 1997 results would fall well short of Wall Street analysts' estimates. The database management software vendor's shares dropped by $3.375 to $9.9375 in heavy Nasdaq trading. Sybase said per-share totals would range from a loss of seven cents to a profit of two cents. By comparison, analysts projected Sybase to earn 12 cents a share, according to First Call. Sybase also anticipated an operating profit before taxes, plus revenue of $245 million to $250 million. Chmn and CEO Mitchell Kertzman blamed Sybase's performance mostly on poor execution in the North American market but noted growing challenges in the database market. Business preference for purchasing databases has shifted in recent years. Instead of developing their own programs, an increasing number of corporations are buying databases with prepackaged applications from vendors such as SAP, Baan and Peoplesoft.
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The reports of Informix Software's first quarter losses are expected to be released by the end of Apr 1997. The database software company believes the shortfall in revenue may be due in part to the promotion of Informix's new Universal Server technology before the technology was ready for market. The company's inability to close sales of its older relational database software is also believed to have contributed to the revenue shortage. Analysts believe Informix's 34.71% share loss will damage the company, and give rival Oracle an opportunity to gain market share. The Universal Server is a combination of an object-relational database management program and Informix's relational database management software. Oracle has not yet introduced its own Universal Server.
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