In order to maximize the performance of the products and services and have any hope of them getting adopted, organizations need to integrate vertically and create interdependent architectures that tightly weave different components together to optimize performance, in terms of functionality and reliability.

FORBES: Is the Technology 'Ready' for Blended Learning?

As databases in general become more strategically vital, and as cloud technology becomes essential within advanced IT architectures, Oracle is betting that the combination of speed and cost-performance offered by its increasingly popular Exadata engineered systems will allow the company to stay well ahead of other alternatives.

FORBES: Larry Ellison: As We Thump IBM, Our Next Target Is Teradata

When it did, its performance was not sufficient to lure customers away from competing Sun and IBM architectures, and sales flagged.

FORBES: While HP And Oracle Sully Cloaks, IBM Takes Their Customers