Informatica Preps SaaS Platform, Partner Program

This week, Informatica unveiled a partner program aimed at SaaS vendors and systems integrators. Initial participants include Wipro, TCS, NetSuite and Salesforce.com, which will soon release an Informatica PowerCenter connector application through its AppExchange partner network.

The Informatica program offers added flexibility in the delivery of the vendor’s integration tools, including their pricing. SaaS partners can now opt for subscription licensing to match their billing models. But Informatica's SaaS offerings will be rolled out in waves, and the initial wares will remain traditionally priced.

The Informatica PowerCenter Connect for Salesforce.com is scheduled for release in the third quarter. Targeted at the two vendors’ current joint customers, the connector will let organizations migrate data between Salesforce.com and on-premise enterprise applications.

Pricing for the connector hasn’t been announced, but it will be on a per-CPU basis and in line with what Informatica charges for PowerCenter connectors for other enterprise systems such as SAP, Informatica executives said.

Redwood City, Calif.-based Informatica picked Salesforce.com's platform for its first SaaS connector application release because that's where the customer demand is, said Karen Steele, Informatica's vice president of corporate marketing. She expects connectors for other platforms to follow as market demand dictates.

By the end of the year, Informatica plans to add a handful of new partners to the SaaS program.

"First and foremost, we want to see customer demand on both sides," Steele said, explaining how Informatica will select new partners. "The go-to-market strategy is not really going after a new market per se, but making sure we can satisfy customer needs. [With Salesforce.com], we looked at their customer lists and our customer lists, and there was a huge overlap. When we found the pain in one account, we found it in others."

Informatica also is prepping a new on-demand data integration platform, which it hopes SaaS vendors will license and incorporate into their offerings. Built with a multitenant architecture, the platform will enable users to integrate data from multiple, heterogeneous on- and off-premise systems without installing integration software. The Informatica On-Demand Data Integration Platform is scheduled for release early next year.

"The intersection we see occurring is part of the acceptance of the on-demand business Web," Salesforce.com partner head Bobby Napiltonia said of his company's alliance with Informatica. "As you roll out applications, the very first thing you want to know and do is, 'Can I integrate my existing data?' "