Oracle Corp. announced the introduction of two new Sun Netra servers that help network equipment providers and communications service providers keep pace with rapidly growing demands for new services such as 3G- and 4G-wireless data and voice-over-IP. The Sun Netra servers expand Oracle's complete, open and integrated portfolio of industry-leading software and hardware for the communications industry, including carrier-grade SPARC and x86-based blade and rack servers, storage and networking infrastructure. Sun Netra servers, combined with the Oracle Database 11g, Oracle TimesTen In-Memory Database and Oracle Fusion Middleware, provide a comprehensive hardware and software foundation for communications infrastructure. Coupled with the mission-critical Oracle Solaris operating system, Sun Netra servers deliver extremely high reliability and scalability for running demanding communications services with 24x7 availability. Oracle's Sun Netra CP3270 Advanced Telecom Computing Architecture (ATCA) blade server meets the increasing requirements for greater performance and memory-in-infrastructure networks while also maintaining a low power and thermal footprint to cut operating costs for mission-critical environments. Oracle's Sun Netra X4270 AC and DC carrier-grade rack server features high performance and unprecedented density in a rugged, energy-efficient and compact form. Enhancing the performance of the previous generation of x86 ATCA blade servers, the Sun Netra CP3270 ATCA server is designed to enhance application performance while reducing the overall system power and cooling demands.

Oracle Corp. announced that it has launched a new feature pack as a part of its Continuous Delivery Model for Oracle's PeopleSoft Enterprise Campus Solutions, to help higher education institutions effectively manage extensive and diverse admissions application processes. PeopleSoft Enterprise Campus Solutions 9.0 Feature Pack 3 includes Admission Applications Web Services (AAWS) which enable an online admissions application process with self-service capabilities for prospective students and administrators. AAWS enhance the service-oriented architecture (SOA) of Campus Solutions by providing more configurability and flexibility for higher education institutions. This edition follows the release of Oracle's PeopleSoft Enterprise Campus Solutions 9.0 Feature Pack 2 which enhanced institution relations with both students and prospective students by fully integrating the Campus Solutions suite with PeopleSoft Enterprise CRM 9.1 for Higher Education and providing integration support for Campus Solutions Student Financials with Oracle E-Business Suite Financials. The Continuous Delivery Model of Campus Solutions enables higher education institutions to avoid disruptive major upgrades by delivering periodic application Feature Packs that provide new functionality to meet immediate needs. PeopleSoft Enterprise Campus Solutions 9.0 Feature Pack 3 Details. Using AAWS, institutions can construct and deploy online applications while taking advantage of the integration and interoperability offered by Web services. Once assigned a unique user name, applicants can enter important information such as personal data, intended academic area of study or residency while being able to save their progress and return any number of times until they have completed their work and are ready to submit. Subsequently, administrators can view, manage application data and track the progress of all active admission applications. Considering the variability of admissions applications throughout the world, AAWS provide institutions with the flexibility to select and customize online data entry to fit their needs. By having complete control over the format and composition of the application, institutions can incorporate their unique admissions criteria -- down to particular colleges or programs -- into the admissions database. Because PeopleSoft Enterprise Campus Solutions with Feature Pack 3 has self-service capabilities, it is critical to prevent duplicate data entry, which could occur as so many prospective students have access to the system. Configuration options delivered with AAWS allow for automatic search/match processing every time a user saves or submits an admissions application, significantly reducing the chance of duplicates. As a part of the admissions process, institutions typically receive multiple types of information about an applicant from external sources. AAWS are formatted to move multiple data records from any external file into the Campus Solutions database, regardless of the type of system or source, reducing the administrative burden of converting information.

Oracle Corp. announced the availability of Oracle Utilities Meter Data Management 2.0, a key component of the Oracle Utilities Smart Meter Platform, which helps utilities manage the vast quantity of customer energy and water consumption data gathered from smart meter deployments. With Oracle Utilities Smart Meter Platform, utilities can organize consumption data and turn it into actionable intelligence -- improving service, controlling operational costs and responding appropriately to meter-related events and alerts. Oracle Utilities Meter Data Management 2.0 sits at the platform's core and verifies, stores, processes and formats the data, providing every utility department, application and business process with the metering information it needs. Key Features and Benefits are: through this new version, Oracle has resolved the integration challenges that exist in the industry between customer information systems and meter data management systems. Oracle Utilities Meter Data Management 2.0 minimizes data duplication and interoperates with Oracle Utilities Customer Care and Billing, enabling, for example, a customer service representative to easily access the data required to resolve customer queries without having to jump between applications. With Oracle Utilities Meter Data Management 2.0, utilities can still leverage custom, legacy systems with a more simplified IT architecture, which supports the move to time-of-use, intraday or real-time pricing initiatives. The software enables utilities to retain the key flexibility needed to configure an IT system to meet the goals of any smart grid initiative. Oracle Utilities Meter Data Management 2.0 features a centralized device portal that delivers maximum flexibility to all users across the organization. It enables customer service representatives to easily review current and historical usage, while also allowing field service technicians to view metering activity details and manage meter reading schedules. The device portal also contains tools that help utilities view/edit interval data, look for signs of tampering or theft, view/analyze audit records and examine weather patterns to determine usage variations from one time period to another. Within the next 12 months, Oracle plans to include the following applications in Oracle Utilities Smart Meter Platform: Oracle Utilities Business Intelligence for Meter Data Management, Oracle Utilities Smart Grid Gateway and full support of communication to customers regarding usage and efficiency programs.