SAP backing for Team NZ in wind

By ADAM GIFFORD

Team New Zealand is set to benefit from an off-the-water battle between software industry giants Oracle and SAP.

Word from the waterfront is that Germany's SAP, the world's third-largest software company with revenues last year of 6.27 billion euros ($13.8 billion), will sign a multimillion-dollar deal to sponsor the New Zealand defence of the America's Cup.

That means if Larry Ellison's United States Oracle challenge reaches the finals, it will find the name of Mr Ellison's biggest rival on the side of the black boat.

Mr Ellison, a keen yachtsman, took part in the Sydney-Hobart race in 1999. But he was not able to match the achievement of SAP co-chairman Hasso Plattner, who won the race the previous year in record time in his yacht Morning Glory.

SAP also sponsored the handicap winner of the last Sydney-Hobart, SAPAusmaid, and Mr Plattner has been involved in most of the big-boat overseas series around the world.

He has just bought Shockwave, built by Sydney-based New Zealand businessman Neville Crichton - the maxi that pulled out of the last Sydney-Hobart race because it was too rough.

SAP was founded in 1972 in Waldorf by five former IBM systems engineers, including Mr Plattner, who wanted to build software to run large businesses.

Their success can be measured in the number of customers SAP enjoys today - more than 13,000 companies in over 100 countries, including over half of the world's top 500 companies.

Onshore competition between Oracle and SAP has heated up in recent years as Oracle, the second-largest software company with sales last year of $US10.9 billion ($27 billion), sought to turn its dominance of computer databases into dominance in the applications market.

While both companies' share prices have dropped in the post dotcom market, their huge installed bases and continued revenues from software maintenance agreements have left them in a healthier position than competitor companies such as i2, Commerce One and Ariba.

In New Zealand, SAP has several major sites including Carter Holt Harvey, Air New Zealand, TransAlta and the Auckland City Council, as well as sites in the government and health sectors.

However, licence sales have slowed post-Y2K.

While Oracle's database business here is strong, its main application sales have been to the dairy industry, with the New Zealand Dairy Group one of its largest sites globally.

Team New Zealand head Tom Schnackenberg refused to confirm the sponsorship.

"We don't talk about who we're talking to," he said.

SAP's company policy is also to keep mum. "I have no comment on this rumour," said Chris Burton from SAP New York, who is responsible for SAP sponsorships globally.

Meanwhile, another information technology billionaire is scaling back his America's Cup challenge after spending $US30 million.

OneWorld founder Craig McCaw from Seattle said he must "respond appropriately to changed market dynamics" and concentrate on his telecommunications investments.

He has asked the OneWorld management team to look for commercial and private partners to continue the challenge for the cup.