Tuesday, March 28, 2006
SAP BI, analytics push won't squeeze out Cognos, other vendors
SAP BI, analytics push won't squeeze out Cognos, other vendors: "Still, companies gain an advantage from using a third party BI vendor over SAP if they are in a heterogeneous environment where data from SAP and non-SAP systems needs to be analyzed, said Keith Gile, principal analyst at Cambridge, Mass.-based Forrester Research Inc.
'SAP BI capabilities within the NetWeaver BW stack are solid, but they're not the most prevalent in the industry,' Gile said. 'They are more appropriate when working exclusively in a targeted SAP environment. There's far less allure for SAP BI in heterogeneous environments.'
Cognos has been aggressively developing integration capabilities to take advantage of the widespread use of third-party applications among SAP customers. The company built Cognos 8 using a Web-based architecture.
Cognos is just one of a handful of vendors vying for SAP customers, and so far the BI vendor market doesn't appear to be headed toward consolidation, Gile said. It is not uncommon to find BI tools and applications from third-party vendors in SAP shops, he said. France-based Business Objects S.A., Santa Clara, Calif.-based Hyperion Solutions Corp., and Cary, N. C.-based SAS Institute Inc. are among Cognos' competitors.
'Many large enterprises are using between five and 15 BI vendors,' Gile said. 'It's a little out of control, and one of the trends is that companies are trying to add some sanity to this overabundance of BI tools.' "
'SAP BI capabilities within the NetWeaver BW stack are solid, but they're not the most prevalent in the industry,' Gile said. 'They are more appropriate when working exclusively in a targeted SAP environment. There's far less allure for SAP BI in heterogeneous environments.'
Cognos has been aggressively developing integration capabilities to take advantage of the widespread use of third-party applications among SAP customers. The company built Cognos 8 using a Web-based architecture.
Cognos is just one of a handful of vendors vying for SAP customers, and so far the BI vendor market doesn't appear to be headed toward consolidation, Gile said. It is not uncommon to find BI tools and applications from third-party vendors in SAP shops, he said. France-based Business Objects S.A., Santa Clara, Calif.-based Hyperion Solutions Corp., and Cary, N. C.-based SAS Institute Inc. are among Cognos' competitors.
'Many large enterprises are using between five and 15 BI vendors,' Gile said. 'It's a little out of control, and one of the trends is that companies are trying to add some sanity to this overabundance of BI tools.' "
