Business-Intelligence Market Rolls On

The business-intelligence software industry may be consolidating, but it isn't slowing down. Business Objects SA and SPSS Inc. next week will debut significant upgrades to their core business-intelligence products while Cognos Inc. will formally unveil its much-ballyhooed ReportNet query and reporting software.

Improved data analysis and integration and an enhanced user dashboard are the key elements of BusinessObjects Enterprise 6.1, the new release of Business Objects' core suite that includes its query and reporting software, portal product, analytical applications, and data-integration tools.

The new release better leverages the online analytical processing functions that IBM, Microsoft, and Oracle have built into their database software. The new Knowledge Accelerator application provides a way to deliver customized training materials to users. The software's data-integration engine now operates in a parallel fashion and offers built-in data previewing and profiling capabilities. Enterprise 6.1 will be available this month. And enhanced metadata integration improves the software's manageability.

"We've found that the reporting engine has been showing a 30 percent to 35 percent gain in report-refresh capabilities," says Tom Nather, a senior systems analyst at Penske Logistics. The supply-chain management services subsidiary of Penske Corp., which uses Business Objects' software for internal applications and to provide clients with transportation and shipping data, is evaluating the new release and will likely install it late this year. Nather says the most-liked enhancement is the ability to download a report directly into Microsoft Excel. "About 15 of our customers have asked for this," he says.

SPSS 12.0 for Windows, a new release of the vendor's flagship statistical-analysis and data-management software, adds presentation graphics and an add-on module for stratifying large data sets such as survey results.

"There are a number of enhancements that are truly significant," says Charles Thor, CEO of CJT-Performance Systems LLC, which uses SPSS applications for the data-analysis services it provides the energy industry. Thor has tested the new release and he says the most important enhancement is support for 64-character variable names for importing and describing data files. He also praises the new graphics, noting that previously he used SPSS software for data analysis, then moved the results to another application with better graphics for presentation.

A number of new features improve the software's data management and output management, such as a read-only option that prevents the accidental destruction of data. SPSS 12.0 for Windows servers will be available this month, while versions for AIX, RedHat Linux, and Solaris will ship in October.

Cognos is expected to attract a lot of attention Sept. 9 with its debut of ReportNet, its Web-based query and reporting software that it's been quietly selling for several months. ReportNet is designed for large-scale deployments and can handle production reporting and ad hoc reporting tasks.

This story courtesy of InformationWeek.