Oracle’s integration partnerships with salesforce.com and NetSuite will have some observers scratching their heads. And rightly so. I believe it was our American friends who came up with the word “co-opetition”, to describe that slightly perilous state in which competitors agree to work with one another. But never has that word been more apt than in the case of a partnership announced as went to press: Oracle and salesforce.com are getting into bed together in a comprehensive nine-year partnership. Unlikely? You’d better believe it. Not only that, but Oracle announced another integration deal with yet another competitor: NetSuite. What gives?
Let’s recap. Salesforce.com founder and CEO Marc Benioff used to work for Oracle CEO Larry Ellison. Ellison even put in some money to his new venture and sat on salesforce.com’s board. Benioff once proudly told me that he is the only person who has ever sacked Larry Ellison, after he stripped him of his board seat when it became clear salesforce.com would compete with Oracle.
Content from our partners
