InfoWorld

Oracle buys ClearApp for SOA management

<div class="rxbodyfield"><p page="1" class="ArticleBody">Oracle plans to buy ClearApp, maker of software for managing the performance of composite applications in SOA (service-oriented architecture) environments, the company announced Tuesday.</p><p align="right"><a href="http://ad.doubleclick.net/jump/idg.us.info.rss/news;pos=imu;tile=6;sz=336x280;skey=patch_management;pkey=security;ord=123456789?" target="_blank" /><img src="http://ad.doubleclick.net/ad/idg.us.info.rss/news;pos=imu;tile=6;sz=336x280;skey=patch_management;pkey=security;ord=123456789?" width="336" height="280" border="0" alt="" align="right"/></a></p><p page="1" class="ArticleBody">The deal is expected to close later this year. Terms were not disclosed.</p><p page="1" class="ArticleBody">SOA sees applications pulled together from multiple, sometimes shared components, theoretically giving IT departments flexibility and the opportunity for reuse.</p><p page="1" class="ArticleBody">But SOA environments also introduce a level of complexity that can make it hard to nail down the source of performance problems or pinpoint the effect of changes made to a given component, Oracle said.</p><p page="1" class="ArticleBody">ClearApp's software automatically discovers application components and their dependencies at runtime and monitors performance, according to Oracle. It will work alongside Oracle's Enterprise Manager platform.</p><p page="1" class="ArticleBody">ClearApp, based in Mountain View, California, also supports competing platforms such as IBM's WebSphere.</p><p page="1" class="ArticleBody">An Oracle <a href="http://www.oracle.com/clearapp/clearapp-faq.pdf">FAQ</a> on the pending sale did not specify how those relationships would continue, except to say that existing features in ClearApp's software would be supported.</p><p page="1" class="ArticleBody">ClearApp's technology provides "deep visibility into the components underlying SOA-based composite applications," but the acquisition also raises questions, as it follows related purchases of companies like Auptyma and Moniforce, said ZapThink analyst Jason Bloomberg in an e-mail Tuesday.</p><p page="1" class="ArticleBody">"Just how many management vendors does Oracle need to acquire before they have a coherent SOA management story that's not just more of their Frankenstein strategy? (That is, put together a lot of parts and hope for lightning)," Bloomberg wrote.</p><p page="1" class="ArticleBody">"Oracle does have quite a bit of experience in assimilating acquired technologies, and they're also known for taking care of the customers that come along as a result, but every such acquisition sets the bar of success higher for them," he added.</p></div>