Cognos Launches ReportNet

Business intelligence solutions provider Cognos today conducted a worldwide launch of ReportNet, its next-generation enterprise query-and-reporting system and delivery vehicle for corporate performance management (CPM). The Web-based product aims at converging both the business intelligence capabilities of Cognos's products and its reporting capabilities, so that nearly any user in a company has access to data and can run reports of any complexity. "It started with a clean sheet of paper and 30 developers," Cognos CEO Ron Zambonini says of the new product. "It finished with 300 developers and the incredible product we are debuting today." According to Christopher Dziekan, director of business and market development at Cognos, ReportNet's features also include seamless transition into different languages and currencies, support for all types of data warehouses, and the ability to easily embed multimedia objects into any report. Investment firm Bear Stearns has been beta testing the product, and Ashe Vasthare, managing director and principal with Bear Stearns, explained that the company is integrating ReportNet into its Web portal to provide clients a single reporting network across all Bear Stearns business lines. "The clincher was ReportNet's support for all levels of users, support for a wide variety of data sources, multisection printing capability, support for Web services, and its friendly user interface," Vasthare told the audience. During the product launch presentation, Howard Dresner, vice president and analyst with Gartner, explained that Cognos's dedication to converging interactive-analysis capabilities with deep reporting functionality places Cognos in a leader position in the firm's Enterprise Business Intelligence Suite and Reporting Software Magic Quadrant. Some financial analysts say the product will be a major boon for Cognos. "We are maintaining our Market Outperform rating on Cognos," says Patrick Walravens, managing director and senior research analyst covering application software at JMP Securities. "Consultants and salespeople we spoke with described early ReportNet sales as 'great' and told us that ReportNet has already become a flagship product for Cognos. In terms of lateral implications, ReportNet represents a competitive threat to Business Objects, Actuate, and MicroStrategy." While Cognos may be touting ReportNet as its flagship product, the company stressed that it does not expect all its customers to migrate instantly to the platform. Zambonini noted that Cognos will continue to fully support its other product lines, and noted that ReportNet's Web-based architecture may not be right for all Cognos customers. Dziekan put it this way: "Customers can migrate when they are ready. There's no rush."