CEBIT – SAP plans new version of All-in-One in 2006

German business software company SAP plans to release a new version of its All-in-One software targeting midsize companies in the second half of 2006.

The new version will come with the integration middleware SAP NetWeaver, which helps companies migrate their IT systems to a services-oriented architecture (SOA), CEO Heninng Kagermann said at a news conference at the Cebit trade show on Thursday.

The All-in-One application, a scaled-down version of mySAP Business Suite for large enterprises, targets customers with annual sales of between €20 million ($24 million) and €500 million, according to Kagermann. The product, which is available in 50 countries, is now used by more than 7,700 midsize companies worldwide.

Also at Cebit, Kagermann said he encouraged the competition among the eight R&D centers that SAP has established around the world. “We have always had a business culture that encourages competition internally,” he said. “Competition is good for business.”

SAP has established its R&D network to compete worldwide for highly qualified IT people, Kagermann said.