REDWOOD SHORES, CA -- (Marketwire) -- 11/05/12 -- Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL)

News Facts

• Today, Oracle announced the results of its "Designing an M2M Platform for the Connected World" research, examining the evolving drivers behind 'Machine to Machine' (M2M) projects and how those changes are impacting solution requirements.
• The research, which was produced by M2M analyst experts Beecham Research on behalf of Oracle, provides a qualitative assessment of solution requirements across the M2M value chain. Participants included end-users, major product OEMs, systems integrators, mobile network operators and M2M platform providers in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific.
• The research found that M2M data from remotely located assets and devices in the field is increasingly being used more broadly for strategic purposes and value creation throughout the enterprise. It has also become a means for creating new market opportunities while providing a competitive advantage for enterprise users in their own key markets.
• Other key findings included an increased focus on leveraging the cloud and managing data security in M2M initiatives, as more information is integrated and shared across departments and business functions.
• To access the full report, please visit here.

M2M Data Becoming Increasingly Critical Across the Enterprise

• The research found that the main drivers behind M2M projects are evolving, with 75 percent of participants noting that enabling new services and revenue streams is fuelling M2M projects.
• While leveraging M2M data in operations is still key, the research found a growing interest among adopters in using M2M data for strategic decision making, providing feedback on product and services performance in the field, and tailoring products and services to meet specific customer needs.
• 85 percent of users said an increased focus on better managing large volumes of M2M generated data is necessary to address performance and costs issues, especially as applications, such as smart meters and automotive telematics/automotive diagnostics systems, are generating increased volumes of data.
• The use of Complex Event Processing (CEP) with M2M data will also provide users with the real-time intelligence they need to take immediate action on pre-determined factors. 65 percent of respondents saw high value in the CEP opportunity, both for B2B and especially B2B2C next generation applications.
  • This could include situations where several data sources contribute to a decision process without human intervention, such as reflecting weather conditions in agriculture management to trigger automatic irrigation or powering real-time human behavior profiling and facial recognition alerts for security applications.
• Increasing reliance on M2M data and tighter integration with other IT systems resulted in 80 percent of respondents noting that minimizing downtime in M2M has become critically important.

Other Key Findings

• Securing M2M Data is Critical: The increasing value, as well as volume of data, means that storing, managing, securing and analyzing data from connected devices is becoming mission critical within organizations. As such, leading implementation priorities have now become:
  • Ensuring end-to-end security indicated by 60 percent of participants.
  • Integration with IT, indicated by 50 percent of participants.
  • Coordinating partners in an increasingly complex value chain, indicated by 45 percent of participants.
• Powering M2M Solutions in the Cloud Reduces Cost and Complexity: Leveraging the cloud was noted as key in M2M projects, as it greatly reduces the cost and complexity of delivering M2M solutions. In fact, 90 percent of respondents noted the cloud as being "vitally important" to M2M initiatives.
• Platform Standardization Growing in Importance: 50 percent of those surveyed noted they see the advantages of having the same software development environment and programming language, such as Java, across all components of an M2M solution.

Supporting Quotes

• "Cheaper, more powerful devices and low cost mobile network connectivity are driving an explosion in the number of connected devices and the data generated by them. The "Designing an M2M Platform for the Connected World" research shows a shift in focus towards extracting value from that data and capitalizing on new business models which are enabled by the pervasion of connected devices," said Chris Baker, senior vice president ISV, OEM and Java Sales, Oracle Alliances & Channels. "From Java on the devices to Oracle Engineered Systems in the datacenter, Oracle's end-to-end M2M platform can simplify the process of collecting, storing, managing and analyzing the data collected by connected devices, while minimizing storage costs and helping ensure the integrity and security of data."
• "The substantial growth prospects for the M2M market can only be achieved through successful deployment of M2M solutions end-to-end, many of which are complex," said Robin Duke-Woolley, CEO of Beecham Research. "This research helps to confirm the real trends under way for solution requirements in the M2M market, including the growing business-to-business-to- consumer opportunity, and how these can best be supported."
• "Our customers use the SeeControl Nexus Cloud to design and launch unique M2M-based businesses across multiple verticals. Due to our exclusive use of Oracle technologies -- from device to data center -- they are confident in getting to market fast and evolving these novel M2M services as they get feedback. And, customers know our cloud offers the highest levels of enterprise grade security, scalability and performance," Bryan Kester, CEO, SeeControl.

Supporting Resources

• Download the full "Designing an M2M Platform for the Connected World" report Oracle PartnerNetwork
• Oracle PartnerNetwork M2M Platform Knowledge Zone and Specialization
• Oracle's Java Embedded Products
• Connect with the Oracle Partner and Java communities at OPN on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube or Java on Twitter, I Love Java on Facebook and Java on YouTube

About Oracle
Oracle engineers hardware and software to work together in the cloud and in your data center. For more information about Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL), visit www.oracle.com.

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