Oracle OpenWorld 2008 kicks off

An estimated 43,000 attendees have converged on San Francisco for the start of Oracle's OpenWorld 2008 conference.

The company has made a raft of new announcements, including new collaboration tools, enhancements to its partnership programmes, updates to some of its most popular applications and two new business divisions.

Oracle has promised more details of its Beehive collaboration tool which allows disparate communications applications to be viewed within a single open software platform.

The firm is also revamping its partner programme in an effort to draw in more resellers to the fold.

Enhancements include software training 'Boot Camps' for users, and a redesign of the Oracle Partner Network Competency Center and portal.

Oracle has also previewed version 12.1 of E-Business Suite 12, which has more global financial applications and new supply chain and manufacturing features.

The company now claims to be the leading platform for software-as-a-service (SaaS) and cloud computing. Oracle said that it has over 250 ISVs using its SaaS platform and is looking to recruit more.

More announcements are expected later in the conference, which runs until 25 September. Chief executive Larry Ellison will deliver his keynote on 24 September.