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Free Oracle Supplier Network Sparks Increased Supplier, Buyer Adoption
Oracle's announcement last quarter that membership in the Oracle Supplier Network (OSN) would always remain free has prompted a number of buyers and suppliers to join the e-procurement network that offers a single communications point.
The online service managed by Oracle for Oracle 11i customers and their suppliers eliminates many of the complexities companies face when they try to replace inefficient phone and fax communications with electronic transactions.
Acting as a messaging hub, OSN offers a single communications point that lets trading partners exchange electronic business documents over secure internet connections. A central network such as OSN reduces the integration, transmission, and maintenance costs that arise when companies form multiple ad hoc networks with their trading partners.
OSN has seen a spike in signups by Oracle 11i customers since Oracle announced its commitment to no-cost pricing, according to Jeff Glanville, OSN's principle product manager. Now, growing numbers of both suppliers and buyers are taking advantage of OSN. Buyers now include Humana, Honeywell Industry Solutions U.K., the City of Miami, Millipore, BMC Software, Wellcare, and Yahoo.
Suppliers supporting OSN include Office Depot, Dell Inc., Hewlett Packard, Corporate Express Australia, Verizon Wireless, and Sprint.
"OSN is really about providing a no-cost connection between buying organizations and their major suppliers," says Glanville. "We're pleased to see that our public pricing commitment has been received so warmly by procurement organizations and their suppliers."
Reuters, the global news service, says the benefit of OSN for buyers like itself comes from the close ties it maintains with the office supply companies that support its almost 200 news bureaus around the world (see related story in this issue).
In a more industrial arena, MSC Industrial Supply (NYSE: MSM), a US$1.6 billion distributor of maintenance, repair, and operating supplies for industrial customers, is broadening its use of OSN to streamline transactions.
"There are benefits for all sides in terms of getting everybody connected a lot faster and eliminating the pain of trying to connect with each individual customer," says Barbara Barry, business manager for e-procurement.
"Having transactions come through one stable environment rather than coming through multiple sources offers a tremendous benefit," she adds.
With OSN acting as a common point of integration between buyers and suppliers, questions about how to establish reliable connections diminish. "It's really about value creation—we want to grow our business and customers want to save money," Barry says.
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