Oracle Leads in Predictive Analytics and Data Mining, Forrester Reports

Oracle has been named a leader in predictive analytics and data mining (PA/DM) from independent analyst firm Forrester Research. In "The Forrester Wave: Predictive Analytics And Data Mining Solutions, Q1 2010,” Oracle Data Mining with Oracle Database 11g Release 2 were evaluated. Senior Analyst James G. Kobielus writes that the company positions its PA/DM portfolio as a key enabler for both traditional data mining as well as the new world of real-time decision automation, content analytics, and social network analysis.

Built into its own widely adopted DBMS, DW, data integration, and BI platforms, Oracle provides a PA/DM solution portfolio with a wide range of prepackaged predictive applications. The analysis notes that Oracle provides a powerful assortment of algorithms for mining complex structured and unstructured information types.

"Oracle focuses on in-database mining in the Oracle Database, on integration of Oracle Data Mining into the kernel of that database, and on leveraging that technology in Oracle’s branded applications," Kobielus writes. "Oracle’s key current offering differentiators are DBMS-integrated data-preparation tools; semistructured and unstructured information integration; text analytics; strategy maps; ensemble modeling; champion-challenger modeling; sentiment analysis; social network analysis; and support for a competitive range of statistical algorithms and variable selection techniques."

Other key features also noted:

Support for multilanguage and SOA development
Interactive visualization in BI tools
Integrated same-vendor application/middleware stack

Conversely, the report did point out that Oracle lacks genetic algorithms; time-series forecasting; and support for R-based development. Its PA/DM tool, which is built into the Oracle Database, also lacks the ability to deploy over any other database, Forrester mentioned.

Oracle Data Mining enables customers to integrate actionable predictive information and build into business intelligence and other applications. Using the data mining functionality in Oracle Database 11g, customers can easily find patterns and insights otherwise hidden in their data warehouses. The Sun Oracle Database Machine delivers increased Oracle Data Mining performance by performing scoring of data mining models in Oracle Exadata Storage Servers.

Commenting on Oracle's position as a leader in the area, Ray Roccaforte, vice president of Data Warehousing and Analytics, Oracle, said, “By moving predictive analytics to their Oracle Database, customers save time and money by eliminating data movement and duplication into multiple repositories and servers. And now with the Sun Oracle Database Machine, customers can offload data mining scoring to intelligent Oracle Exadata Storage Servers for even faster predictive analysis.”

Forrester’s 53-criteria evaluation of PA/DM assessed nine vendors. Besides Oracle, the other vendors were Angoss Software, FICO, IBM (pre-SPSS acquisition), KXEN, Portrait Software, SAS Institute, SPSS (an IBM product group whose PA/DM offering were evaluated separately from IBM), and TIBCO Software.

Predictive analytics solutions are key components of enterprise decision support environments. Typically integrated with data mining tools to support forecasting against structured data sets, predictive analytics is a centerpiece of many organizations’ advanced analytics environments.

The importance of PA/DM solutions is in leveraging and extending companies' investments in business intelligence (BI); enterprise data warehousing (EDW); extract, transform, and load (ETL); and other key analytics platforms, tools, and applications. In addition, many PA/ DM tools often perform some functions associated with text analytics or supplement standalone tools that specialize in supporting predictive analysis against unstructured or semistructured information sets.

More Information

"The Forrester Wave: Predictive Analytics And Data Mining Solutions, Q1 2010"

Oracle Data Mining

Oracle Data Mining Data Sheet

Sun Oracle Database Machine [...read more...]

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