IBM announced a new, specially priced solution uniquely configured for small and medium business (SMB) customers adopting Oracle's JD Edwards EnterpriseOne applications. Designed specifically for customers with 100 users or less, the solution is based on IBM's "all-in-one" System i business computing platform and delivers a comparable acquisition cost to analogous Windows-based solutions.

The IBM System i 520 Solution Edition for Oracle's JD Edwards EnterpriseOne provides customers, for the first time, a solution that is similarly priced to a comparable configuration on Windows-based systems like Dell PowerEdge. The System i platform delivers an ideal combination of integration and open standards with built-in security, virus-resistance, database and storage as well as the easy systems management for which the platform is known. This means that a small to mid-size business can run programs to manage their accounting, supply chain, email, and disaster recovery -- all on one system that automatically backs-up and helps manage the data.

"SMB customers typically operate in lean environments with little or no IT personnel and limited resources. Some of these customers have previously selected Windows-based environments to support their JD Edwards applications - believing it was the most economical choice - then found themselves acting as the systems integrators for their business as they managed multiple servers and added the operating system and storage they needed to make the solution actually run," said Mark Shearer, general manager of IBM System i. "Today's announcement removes price from the equation, giving SMBs a simpler ERP solution that requires minimal technical expertise."

"The combination of Oracle's JD Edwards ERP solutions and the IBM System i platform has a proven record of delivering outstanding business results for customers," said Lenley Hensarling, vice president and general manager for Oracle's JD Edwards EnterpriseOne product line. "With IBM's new System i 520 Solution Edition for JD Edwards EnterpriseOne, clients can now acquire a very attractively priced system that is optimized for EnterpriseOne."

The System i Solution Edition for Oracle's JD Edwards EnterpriseOne is an integrated hardware and software solution sized specifically with the additional disk storage necessary to provide 100 users access to this robust application suite, which includes such key functions as asset lifecycle, customer relationship, financial, human capital, project, supplier and supply chain management. Working with the IBM/Oracle International Competency Center, IBM System i developers tested and sized the solution specifically for SMBs.

The new Solution Edition will also give SMB customers a simpler, low-priced option to comply with radio frequency identification (RFID) mandates-- allowing them to focus on businesses innovation and compete on a larger scale.

Additionally, recent performance testing of JD Edwards EnterpriseOne on the IBM System i portfolio with POWER 5+ processors demonstrated strong price/performance for companies with up to 1,200 users, making clear that SMB customers of varying sizes can continue to expect powerful performance from their JD Edwards, IBM System i solutions as business needs grow.

Today's news builds on Oracle's announcement in April of its plans to provide continued enhancements to Oracle's JD Edwards World and JD Edwards EnterpriseOne applications running on System i. The continued development of JD Edwards products on System i, combined with Oracle's Lifetime Support Policy http://www.oracle.com/support/premier/lifetime-support-policy.html, signals Oracle's plans to protect the investments of JD Edwards customers.