OpenWorld Fusion Apps update by someone who wasn't there

Ok, so I wasn't actually at OpenWorld, but I've talked to some folks who were and I've done some (very little actually) reading about what happened/didn't happen there. What's easy about providing this "update" on Fusion Apps is that nothing is really changing, so it's kinda easy. (yes, I know that there were 3 Fusion Apps released. What about a comprehensive Fusion Apps suite as previously promised?) So, here are a couple of thoughts:

• Fusion Apps has never been much more than a concept

• I've never seen a clear product roadmap
  

• Exists only in the marketing realm. Anybody else at the “Halfway to Fusion” event in San Fran City Hall in Jan 2006?
  

• Fusion is looking to be more of a technology, than applications play. Less value for the line of business users than for IT.
• Challenges involved in a completely rewritten, unified application seem to have been too much
• The 08 version of Fusion App suite (if one is even released) will likely be separate applications forced glued together with Fusion Middleware
  

• The departure of John Wookey and the ensuing reorg will have substantial negative impact for Oracle customers
• Oracle will likely see organizational upheaval and may lose focus on applications for several months as things sort themselves out
• New org structure emphasizes technology focus of Fusion. Applications now under leadership of Rozwat (server focus) and Kurian (middleware focus)
  

[Oracle][Fusion][Fusion Applications][OpenWorld]

SAP pairs GRC with Identity Management

This is pretty cool as it allows for integration of GRC risk analysis (in this case, specifically Segregation of Duties risk) into the overall user provisioning process. SAP GRC Access Control has had the capability to provision directly to core ERP systems, but now with these web services APIs, customers can integrate the ERP provisioning and risk analysis, remediation and mitigation into their wider user provisioning process. (In fact, I was just talking about this in a customer meeting today).

SAP AG has announced the immediate availability of new GRC web services that enable the seamless integration of identity management software solutions with SAP GRC Access Control. Based on open standards and built on the SAP NetWeaver platform, these new web services open up the full capabilities of SAP GRC Access Control, allowing identity management software vendors to tightly integrate their respective solutions, providing customers with a single set of tools to manage user identities, enforce corporate security policies and ensure compliance with regulatory mandates.

[SAP][GRC][Identity Management][Access Control]