In a bid to remain competitive, and retain its dominant position, it also unveiled the new Oracle Social Network, which adds a social layer on top of the new Oracle Fusion applications.

FORBES: Larry The Social Samurai Takes Oracle All The Way To $40

The building blocks of Fusion were completed last year, says John Wookey, Oracle's applications chief, and by 2008 they will become a seamless amalgam of databases, applications and the middleware that stitches them together.

FORBES: Irreplaceable?

Oracle has its Fusion strategy that places business process management and integration technology in the center of its collection of applications.

FORBES: Is Salesforce.com Wrong to Love Ruby?

Wookey is expected to stay at Oracle for an unspecified transition period as Thomas Kurian, who manages the Fusion middleware business, takes over all Fusion applications development.

FORBES: Another One Booted Out Of Oracle?