Gartner Says Worldwide Relational Database Market Returned to Positive Growth in 2003.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 27, 2004

The worldwide relational database management system (RDBMS) market rebounded in 2003 as new license revenue totaled $7.1 billion, a 5.1 percent increase from 2002, according to Gartner, Inc. In 2002, the RDBMS market declined nearly 6 percent.

"Enterprises have worked through some excess capacity issues, and they are looking to the future," said Colleen Graham, principal analyst for Gartner. "Many companies are examining ways to augment and improve reporting and data management capabilities to meet increasing regulatory compliance requirements. The increasing strategic importance of data warehouse and strategic business intelligence initiatives has provided some of the growth in the RDBMS market."

All of the top-tier RDBMS vendors were able to achieve an increase in new license revenue in 2003. IBM continued to account for 35.7 percent of worldwide RDBMS new license revenue, as its revenue increased 4.9 percent (see Table 1). Gartner analysts said IBM's growth was generated by its DB2 on the iSeries and zSeries platforms. DB2 on the iSeries achieved strong growth as a result of IBM's independent software vendor program, which focuses on penetrating the small and midsize business market.

Table 1
Worldwide RDBMS Software New License Revenue Estimates for 2003
(Millions of U.S. Dollars)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
                                2003     2003     2002    2002
                               Revenue  Market  Revenue  Market
                                        Share            Share  Growth
Company                                  (%)              (%)     (%)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
IBM Total                      2,518.8   35.7   2,400.1   35.7    4.9
     IBM                       2,384.2   33.8   2,239.7   33.3    6.5
     Informix Products           134.6    1.9     160.4    2.4  -16.1
Oracle                         2,299.3   32.6   2,246.3   33.4    2.4
Microsoft                      1,323.0   18.7   1,191.0   17.7   11.1
NCR Teradata                     195.0    2.8     184.0    2.7    6.0
Others                           727.0   10.3     700.8   10.4    3.7
Total Market                   7,063.1  100.0   6,722.2  100.0    5.1
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: Gartner Dataquest (May 2004)

RDBMS on the Windows server platform showed a slight improvement in 2003 with new license revenue reaching $2.8 billion, a 3.8 percent increase from 2002. Microsoft extended its market share in this segment to 47.3 percent, from 44.3 percent in 2002.

The segment that suffered a decline in new license revenue in 2003 was RDBMS on Unix (not including Linux). New license revenue in this market decreased 5.9 percent in 2003. Oracle accounted for 57.4 percent of new license revenue in this segment.

The fastest growing segment in 2003 was RDBMS on the Linux platform. New license revenue for Linux RDBMS totaled $299.3 million in 2003, a 158 percent increase from 2002. Oracle's revenue in this segment grew 360.8 percent in 2003, and it accounted for 69.1 percent of the market. IBM's market share totaled 28.5 percent in 2003, down from its 57.6 percent market share in 2002.

Gartner analysts said some of the revenue growth for the RDBMS market in 2003 can be attributed to currency conversion. When revenue from non-U.S. sales is converted to U.S. dollars, a portion of the growth is a product of the weak dollar and not attributed to increased demand.

Additional information is available in the Gartner Alert "RDBMS Market Grew 5 Percent in 2003." The report provides market share results for the top-tier vendors in the RDBMS market, as well as RDBMS software on Linux, Unix and Windows. The report is available on Gartner's Web site at http://www3.gartner.com/DisplayDocument?id=449616&ref=g_search.

About Gartner

Gartner, Inc. (NYSE: IT and ITB) is the leading provider of research and analysis on the global information technology industry. Gartner serves more than 10,000 clients, including chief information officers and other senior IT executives in corporations and government agencies, as well as technology companies and the investment community. The Company focuses on delivering objective, in-depth analysis and actionable advice to enable clients to make more informed business and technology decisions. The Company's businesses consist of Gartner Intelligence, research and events for IT professionals; Gartner Executive Programs, membership programs and peer networking services; and Gartner Consulting, customized engagements with a specific emphasis on outsourcing and IT management. Founded in 1979, Gartner is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, and has 3,700 associates, including more than 1,000 research analysts and consultants, in more than 75 locations worldwide. For more information, visit www.gartner.com.