When Services and Software Collide: Oracle in Michigan

January 24, 2012

With Hewlett Packard wanting to be “just like” IBM and Oracle, services and software can collide with interesting consequences. If you have been caught in a failed enterprise search system deployment, you may find “Oracle Demands Judge Dismiss University’s Claims over ERP Failure” meaningful. My understanding is that the software did not work for the client. The client did what unhappy clients to; that is, call the lawyers. Then the story took a fascinating turn:

In December, the school filed an amended complaint that added new allegations, including that Oracle had conducted a “rigged” demonstration of the software package at issue. Oracle’s motion this week responds to that filing, asking that its allegations of fraudulent inducement, gross negligent misrepresentation, grossly negligent performance of contractual obligations and willful anticipatory repudiation of contract be dismissed.

Oh, oh. Consultants could not make the system work because the client alleges that Oracle showed a demo. How often has this happened? Cool demo. Failed reality.

I don’t know how this legal matter will turn out, but consultants who try to implement demos may be over their heads and billing for time to convert dreams into functional software can come back and bite, hard. Clueless licensees have teeth and can be a noisy bicycle card in a software consultant’s wheel.

Stephen E Arnold, January 24, 2012

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Stephen E. Arnold monitors search, content processing, text mining and related topics from his high-tech nerve center in rural Kentucky. He tries to winnow the goose feathers from the giblets. He works with colleagues worldwide to make this Web log useful to those who want to go "beyond search". Contact him at sa [at] arnoldit.com. His Web site with additional information about search is arnoldit.com.