Oracle enhances hosted business apps

NEWS

The new version of Oracle's Small Business Suite, developed and hosted by start-up NetLedger and marketed by Oracle, now includes tools for storing product information and coordinating with marketing partners. NetLedger, financially backed by Oracle chief executive Larry Ellison, had already added sales and customer-service components to the software package last autumn. The changes should widen the package's appeal, according to NetLedger chief executive Evan Goldberg. Currently sold mostly to companies with 25 employees or fewer, the upgraded version should appeal to companies with as many as 250 employees. Goldberg launched the company in 1998 with Ellison, to offer small businesses an alternative to off-the-shelf bookkeeping software from Intuit and Microsoft with an application hosted on the Web. Last year, Oracle announced it would help sell the suite and brand it as an Oracle product in exchange for a share of NetLedger's revenues, which totalled $2.5m last year, according to Goldberg. The company lags behind faster-growing rivals, such as Salesforce.com, another start-up in which Larry Ellison holds a stake. Salesforce.com, which offers hosted CRM software, booked nearly $25m in revenue last year, according to chief executive Marc Benioff. CRM applications, which are used by a company's entire sales organisation, have higher revenue potential for software companies than accounting applications, which may be used by only one or two employees of a small business, said Benioff. NetLedger also faces competition from Microsoft, which sells hosted and off-the-shelf accounting applications for small businesses and recently announced plans to release a set of CRM applications for small companies by the end of the year.

For the latest small-business news, see the Small Business Section. Have your say instantly, and see what others have said. Go to the ZDNet news forum. Let the editors know what you think in the Mailroom.

Post your comment

In order to post a comment you need to be registered and logged in.

You can also log in with Facebook. Log in or create your ZDNet UK account below

By signing up for this service, you indicate that you agree to our Terms and Conditions and have read and understood our Privacy Policy. Questions about membership? Find the answers in the Community FAQ

ZDNet UK Live

@kevinmchapman. OK, I acknowledge that 'most' was a gratuitous throwaway comment as an afterthought and too presumptuous. As to proof, as you...

3 hours ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

@BrownieBoy > Works really well for thieves.... >> Nice attempt to deflect the argument by tossing in a point that's totally >> irrelevant, even...

4 hours ago by Jack Schofield on AMD Ultrathins to challenge Intel Ultrabooks

fantastic that the so called piracy bills have been withdrawn. however, these anti-democracy supporters are still in the shadows so lets be alert...

5 hours ago by raskolnikof on SOPA, Protect IP support wavers in face of online protest

Please God no; teach them anything you like - thinking rationally, the uses and misuses of data, what data is and what it's not - but leave the...

7 hours ago by Tony Douglas via Facebook on Kids are the future. Teach ’em to code.

@Jack, > Works really well for thieves.... Nice attempt to deflect the argument by tossing in a point that's totally irrelevant, even it were...

22 hours ago by BrownieBoy on AMD Ultrathins to challenge Intel Ultrabooks

Make that 13 people now - I got refused today at Manchester airport. I thought I was up to date on this legislation - I knew of the EU ruling from...

1 day ago by bootlegger on UK airport body scans will not be opt out

Don't forget to check out apps like GoodReader or SlideShark either, they're indispensible for people on the go in presentation situations. Best...

1 day ago by tinycg on Four top iPad apps for people on the move

Well it seems there is something a number of us agree on. Why is the Ubuntu Unity launcher so ugly? I thought perhaps it was something to do with...

1 day ago by TerryRK on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

Duplicate comments are not made intentionally. Its very good to know that now you are keeping check on this problem because sometimes a commenter...

2 days ago by Freebies202 on Microsoft fixes blog comments, speeds up blogs with open source

"the very significant number of users" and "many (most) of us" - you have no evidence for these statements. It is a fact that most users are saying...

2 days ago by kevinmchapman on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint