Data access tools company Business Objects SA has teamed up with data mart specialist Informatica Corp to extend the Rapid DataMart products it first launched in August 1996 (CI No 2,988). The company, which has offices in Paris, France and San Jose, California, has incorporated Menlo Park, California-based Informatica’s PowerMart suite into its product line, and re-named it Enterprise DataMart. The two companies have been working together for a year or more on the integration of the two products. The result is said to provide a database independent, fixed price offering for up to eight users. It is said to speed up the process of data mart creation, make administration and management easier, and offer a low entry-level price and low cost of ownership with its fixed price of 50,000 pounds. Tailored for use in the UK, Business Objects says it doesn’t currently have any plans to launch the product elsewhere. Charles Nicholls, Business Objects UK marketing director says he expects competitors such as Cognos Inc to come up with similar products in the future. Nicholls says a report carried out by the Gartner group showed that 51% of products on the market at the moment are now solution based, a trend he believes will continue. Datawarehousing now accounts for 50% of the company’s business.
