Oracle continues to struggle to sale servers. Earlier this month the firm reported that third quarter revenue for its servers were down 23 percent year-over-year. Overall the company failed to compete with competitors with only a four percent market share.

The Larry Ellison led company has failed to find the secret sauce necessary to interest firms in its line of hardware. Oracle inability to compete with rivals has really hurt the company’s bottom line over the past few years.

While the company recently launched a new line of Sparc T5 and M5 servers, it is yet to be seen if that will be enough. Even if the servers turn out to be amazing, Oracle’s real problem is its strategy of designing entire systems for only Oracle gear.

The firm runs on the idea that by doing it all themselves they can create the best systems. Not to mention, build out platforms that require all-Oracle software and hardware.

Unfortunately, for Oracle the hardware industry no longer works without some form of corporation. Take HP for example, its Pathfinder program sees the firm working with other tech firms to create ARM servers for its Project Moonshot program.

The program sees HP co-developing servers with hardware and software vendors. HP’s approach is different from Oracle’s in that it aims to build servers that are not so closed and proprietary.

Oracle still exists on an old way of thinking. The firm believes that a business can get away with offering a proprietary system. But in today’s infrastructure that is not true. Users want choice and the ability to not be bogged down by a single option.

HP will need to focus on open platforms if it wants to turn things around. And under Meg Whitman it looks like its going that way. Project Moonshot is a good example of a new paradigm that HP is creating. Overtime that paradigm shift could mean big things for the firms ability to take some of Oracle’s business.

Things at HP and Oracle are both quite bumpy at the moment. But one firm is making the smart move (at least when it comes to servers). HP sees a future more in line with what smaller firms like Salesforce are doing. Oracle, however, is struggling to adapt.

The idea that Oracle doesn’t “get it” isn’t necessarily anything new. Salesforce chief executive and Larry Elision’s mortal enemy Marc Benioff said something similar back in 2011. But Ellison and Oracle still don’t get it.

HP is adapting, even IBM is adapting, but Oracle just doesn’t get it.

27 Mar 2013