Oracle launches Europe-based CRM service

Oracle is to begin offering European users the option to run its CRM On Demand service through systems physically located in the European Union.

The new option will allow customers to access the customer relationship management service in the knowledge that the information will remain within systems housed in Europe.

Oracle hopes that the move will spur growth for the service in the EU, as well as help to clear legal and regulatory hurdles.

The company believes that the move could open up the CRM platform for firms required to keep data on systems within the EU.

"Oracle CRM On Demand is our fastest growing application, and hosting the application locally represents a significant step forward for software-as-a-service adoption by European enterprises, as information assurance around sensitive customer data is becoming an ever increasing concern for major European businesses and regulators," said Steve Fearon, EMEA vice president for CRM On Demand at Oracle.

Data security is among the issues blamed for hampering the growth of enterprise cloud computing services in recent years.

Many companies have cited security as the primary reason for retaining on-premise systems over remotely hosted cloud computing platforms.