In the beginning, there was Berclain, Chesapeake, Demantra, Distinction, Exe, Industri-Matematik, Interchain, Logility, Manugistics, Nistevo, Numetrix, Red Pepper, Scala, SeeCommerce, Syncra, Synquest, Tilion, Viewlocity, and Yantra. And then there were none.
They were acquired by, in order, Baan/Invensys/Infor, AspenTech (AZPN)), Oracle (ORCL), Peoplesoft/Oracle, SSA/Infor, Symphony Technology Group, which also holds a signficant minority interest in Lawson (LWSN), Kewill, which later disposed of its ERP core, American Software (AMSWA)--in fact Logility was always part of American, JDA Software (JDAS), Sterling Commerce/AT&T (T), J.D. Edwards/PeopleSoft/Oracle, Peoplesoft/Oracle, Epicor (EPIC), Teradata (TDC), Retek/Oracle, Viewlocity, Synquest, Tilion and Sterling Commerce/AT&T, respectively.
Actually I am not sure what Snyquest/Tilion/Viewlocity was called by the time some Australian guys bought it.
This is the saga of the Advanced Planning function in the product supply chain as point product and supply chain management [SCM] in general as a point product. The impetus to look back and try to learn something is JDA's announcement that it would acquire i2. (My nominee for the best blog post headline of 2008: "i2: The software company even Oracle didn't want.")
I am not counting the middleware guys like Categoric and Haht that flirted with the SCM category as a marketing technique and exchanges such as e2Open that basically provide a service not software.
I am not counting warehouse and transport guys like E3, Manhattan, McHugh/Red Prarie and HK that tried to ride the coattails of i2 and Manugistics in the glory days but mostly partnered with the ERP guys until the ERP guys could develop their own equivalent functionality.
Over the years at least three software suppliers glommed on to the acronym SCOPE. I think Distinction had it first before PeopleSoft acquired the company and the brand. SAP (SAP) briefly floated the acronym in the late 1990s before--I think--being sued over it by PeopleSoft. Now I notice that Manhattan uses it. Perhaps Oracle, which may not even know it owns the brand, could sue Manhattan after it finishes up the SAP TomorrowNow litigation.
How can a $6 billion market--according to Gartner--not include at least one pure play? If it cannot support a pure play is it really a market? Was the SCM market really only a creation of the venture capitalists and the analyst firms (I plead guilty to participating unfortunately)? As a point product, supply chain is like spell checking, of no value standalone without the rest of the word processing/resource planning functionality (or an equivalent business service).
What can we apply this lesson to? A category called IT Planning/Enterprise Architecture Management [EAM] is coming along as possibly the next example of a function that will not be able to stand alone as a market despite the efforts of Metastorm (on shelf as MTSM) and others. Isn't EAM really part of IT Lifecycle Management or systems management or Project management?
By the way, Demand Management appears to be the exception to the finding that SCM functionality can't stand alone. But it will probably be acquired by Microsoft (MSFT). Actually I think Great Plains also acquired some APS software before it was acquired by Microsoft but I cannot find a reference on the Internet.
And Prescient [PPID.OB] is still traded over the counter but I do not see how it can be used to illustrate anything.
This article has 11 comments:
The correction: Oracle does not own the SCOPE brand, especially as now defined in Manhattan's legal proceedings for the mark. Oracle made an acquisiton several years ago of a company using SCOPE in a limited definition, but did not continue to use the brand and abandoned the mark. Manhattan Associates has completed the necessary legal filings and processes for the mark, including active use as you've noted.
Now, for my comment: I'd like to spend some time updating your view on Manhattan Associates, incorrectly cast as a "warehouse and transport guy." We have some impressive customer success stories we could share with you on customers using our Planning, Forecasting, Inventory Optimization and Order Lifecycle Management solutions, in addition to our Distribution Management and Transportation Lifecycle solutions. We also have invested a significant amount of money, science and math into improving these areas of supply chain optimization. If I may, and if you are interested, I will arrange a briefing at your convenience.
Terrie O'Hanlon
SVP and Chief Marketing Officer, Manhattan Associates
I have used MAXIMO for over 10 years and it works great, just start out of the box. The more you customize it before you use it the more you cause yourself work. If you woulod like some war stories let me know
Industri-Matematik has been acquired by CDC Corporation and we have added Catalyst International to our Supply Chain practize to form a new global player now called CDC Supply Chain. We are a pure play Supply Chain and see healthy growth in our business and are ranked number 8 in the enclosed article (www.mmh.com/article/CA...). It could be worth checking our web site as well if you are looking for vertical player in Supply Chain Management.
Per Norling
President, CDC Supply Chain
Industri-Matematik has been acquired by CDC Corporation and we have added Catalyst International to our Supply Chain practize to form a new global player now called CDC Supply Chain. We are a pure play Supply Chain and see healthy growth in our business and are ranked number 8 in the enclosed article www.mmh.com/article/CA.... It could be worth checking our web site as well if you are looking for vertical player in Supply Chain Management.
Per Norling
President, CDC Supply Chain
To the question, "So what?," my point might have been lost in all of us waltzing down supply chain's memory lane. My point was that there are some functional software areas that will not support separate companies in which to invest. Spell checking was one year ago. APS was one as described in this post. And I feel EAM might be the next one in that category.
-- Dennis
Thanks for the comment
You may be right abou MANH. Terri O'Hanlon, its SVP of Marketing, made a similar comment above so I did not dig deeper. Again, my point is "be careful investing in sectors such as APS that primarily do not standalone as a market" (as illusrated by the way all of these companies were gobbled up) I think EAM may be the next such sector.
I did not do a post on August 12 and do not know MGI Research. This was my only post on JDAS so the article you reference must be elsewhere on SA?
Thanks again
Dennis Byron