Oracle Corp. reported third quarter revenue of $2.2 billion, down from $2.7 billion in third quarter 2001. The Redwood Shores, CA-based software firm’s net income fell to $508 million from $583 million a year ago. The quarter ended Feb. 28.
New software license sales were down 30%, while software license renewals grew 5%. Overall services revenues were down 7%, with support revenues flat with the prior year.
"While the overall economy may have begun its recovery, technology spending is lagging," Jeff Henley, Oracle’s chief financial officer said in a statement.
Henley continued, "In addition, certain industries such as telecommunications, financial services and high-tech manufacturing, where Oracle has been particularly strong, continue to be under stress. As a result, our sales to companies in these industries have slowed markedly compared to a year ago. As the recovery becomes more broad based, we expect technology spending to increase and our software sales to improve."
It’s clear that tight IT budgets are making customers more price sensitive,'' Larry Ellison, Oracle’s chief executive officer said in a statement. "Our aggressively priced products are actually selling quite well in this economic climate."
