Oracle buys ID, access-management companies

Oracle Wednesday said it acquired Thor Technologies, a provider of a cross-platform provisioning products, and OctetString, a developer of virtual directory software. Oracle said the deals would strengthen its portfolio of identity and access management products.

Adding software from Thor and OctetString into Oracle's Identity Management suite, Oracle will offer users access control, identity administration, identity federation, user provisioning directory services and Web services management. Oracle said that customers will reduce administration costs, speed up deployment cycles and improve security by using its identity management strategy.

Identity and access management is growing increasingly important to enterprises, especially as more people are working remotely, said David Bradshaw, an analyst at Ovum. He said Oracle wasn't particularly weak in the identity management market but that "clearly they want to extend their portfolio and customer base" with these acquisitions.

To continue reading, register here and become an Insider. You'll get free access to premium content from CIO, Computerworld, CSO, InfoWorld, and Network World. See more Insider content or sign in.

Oracle Wednesday said it acquired Thor Technologies, a provider of a cross-platform provisioning products, and OctetString, a developer of virtual directory software. Oracle said the deals would strengthen its portfolio of identity and access management products.

Adding software from Thor and OctetString into Oracle's Identity Management suite, Oracle will offer users access control, identity administration, identity federation, user provisioning directory services and Web services management. Oracle said that customers will reduce administration costs, speed up deployment cycles and improve security by using its identity management strategy.

Identity and access management is growing increasingly important to enterprises, especially as more people are working remotely, said David Bradshaw, an analyst at Ovum. He said Oracle wasn't particularly weak in the identity management market but that "clearly they want to extend their portfolio and customer base" with these acquisitions.

By year-end, Oracle plans to begin selling Oracle Xellerate Identity Provisioning, a product based on Thor Xellerate that offers enterprises user access rights management and is designed to enhance security, improve regulatory compliance and improve business responsiveness.

Oracle also plans to start selling Oracle Virtual Directory, software based on OctetString's Virtual Directory Engine, by year-end. The software allows users to easily connect applications to multiple sources of user identities within the enterprise.

Oracle did not disclose the cost of the acquisitions.

The deals are a continuation of an Oracle buying spree. "It's clear that Oracle is firmly on the acquisitions path," Bradshaw said. Most onlookers, however, Bradshaw included, say they'd be surprised to see Oracle make another very large purchase since the company scooped up Siebel in September.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.