LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Rimini Street, Inc., the leading third-party maintenance and support provider for enterprise software, including Oracle Corporation’s (NASDAQ: ORCL) Siebel, PeopleSoft, and JD Edwards software and SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) software, today announced that it filed suit against Oracle in U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada by presenting counterclaims alleging copyright misuse, defamation, disparagement, trade libel, and unfair competition under the California Business and Professions Code. With its filing, Rimini Street aims to end Oracle’s five year campaign of anticompetitive tactics against Rimini Street that most recently includes a baseless lawsuit. Additionally, Rimini Street announced today that it filed its response to Oracle’s complaint, showing Rimini Street’s business processes and procedures are entirely legal and vehemently denying Oracle’s false and malicious allegations.

Rimini Street is Oracle’s Primary Competition for Annual Support Services

Rimini Street is Oracle’s fastest-growing and leading competitor for the annual support of Oracle’s Siebel, PeopleSoft, and JD Edwards software products. In 2009, Rimini Street saw growth of more than 270 percent in year-over-year revenue, doubled its global workforce to 160 professionals, and accumulated nearly $150 million in sales backlog serving hundreds of Global, Fortune 500, mid-market, and public sector organizations around the world.

Oracle has a Long History of Trying to Stifle Rimini Street Competition

Oracle and its predecessors began a systematic campaign to disrupt and halt Rimini Street’s business since the inception of the company in 2005. As Rimini Street’s success grew, so did Oracle’s apparent determination and efforts to disrupt Rimini Street’s growth. Rimini Street’s response to Oracle’s complaint details examples of Oracle’s business interference over many years including:

• Initially, beginning in September 2005, Oracle’s efforts consisted of numerous hostile letters. Over the years, Rimini Street responded to each letter, explained the appropriateness of Rimini Street’s practices and procedures, and repeatedly offered to meet and discuss any questions or concerns Oracle might have about Rimini Street processes and procedures.
• In June 2007, Oracle interfered with authorized work on behalf of Rimini Street clients by changing its website usage terms. Rimini Street wrote Oracle about the anticompetitive tactic against Rimini Street and informed Oracle that the change was likely a breach of Oracle’s client license agreements, which expressly prevent service rights degradation. As such, the changes were not enforceable.
• In December 2008, Oracle escalated its tactics by intentionally blocking Rimini Street’s IP addresses and interfering with Rimini Street’s authorized work on behalf of a large client switching from Oracle to Rimini Street support. After correspondence from both the client and Rimini Street demanding Oracle cease and desist, Oracle stopped the interference.
• Most recently, in January 2010, Oracle once again escalated its anticompetitive tactics, this time through litigation. Oracle filed a baseless lawsuit against Rimini Street, choosing to ignore Rimini Street’s numerous invitations for dialogue, offer to view internal Rimini Street information, and even the opportunity to engage a third party auditor.

Oracle Chooses Competition in the Courtroom Rather than the Marketplace

In February 2009, Rimini Street sought to stop Oracle’s campaign of anticompetitive actions once and for all by again requesting and finally being granted a call with Oracle representatives. On the call, Rimini Street offered to share Rimini Street internal information and/or work out an agreement that would utilize an independent third party auditor reporting back to both parties to confirm Rimini Street’s compliance with its standard processes and procedures. Oracle never responded to any of Rimini Street’s proposals.

Instead, Oracle filed a baseless lawsuit against Rimini Street in an apparent effort to try and protect its 95% dominant market share and monopoly-like 92% gross margins on the annual support of its products.

Rimini Street Vehemently Denies Oracle’s False Accusations

Rimini Street’s business processes and procedures are entirely legal, and Rimini Street vehemently denies Oracle’s accusations. Rimini Street has implemented extraordinary processes and procedures to assure the proper use of Oracle’s intellectual property as detailed more fully in Rimini Street’s response to Oracle’s complaint. For example:

• Each client authorizes Rimini Street to perform work on its behalf
• Rimini Street only delivers Oracle software and support materials to each client who is entitled to receive such materials
• Rimini Street uses separate data “silos” for each client and has policies against co-mingling data
• Rimini Street is authorized by its clients to possess and use copies of their Oracle licensed products to provide services to them, just like IBM, AT&T, Accenture, CedarCrestone and virtually every other hosting service provider working with copies of their client’s licensed products

Support Innovation, Better Value and Ultra Responsive Service

“Rimini Street looks forward to positively resolving its disputes with Oracle, and we remain focused on continuing to deliver award-winning, ultra-responsive service as always to our fast-growing client base who seeks a better software support value,” said Seth Ravin, president and CEO, Rimini Street. “Rimini Street will also continue to aggressively innovate its service offering and expand its popular service to even more software product lines as we continue to execute against our business plan.”

About Rimini Street, Inc.

Rimini Street is the leading third-party provider of enterprise software support services. The company is redefining enterprise support services with an innovative, award-winning program that enables Siebel, PeopleSoft, JD Edwards, and SAP licensees to save at least 50% in annual support fees and save up to 90% in total support costs over a decade. Clients can remain on their current software release without any required upgrades or migrations through 2020 and beyond. Hundreds of Global, Fortune 500, midmarket, and public sector organizations from virtually all industries have selected Rimini Street as their trusted, software vendor independent support provider. To learn more, please visit www.riministreet.com or call within the USA 888-870-9692 or internationally +1-702-839-9671.

Rimini Street and the Rimini Street logo are trademarks of Rimini Street, Inc. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Copyright © 2010. All rights reserved.