
Don't know much about eRoom - but there is the magic phrase 'collaborate in
real-time'... Groove really has people running scared. Wonder if any users
actually /benefit/ from collaborating in real-time.
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http://www.internetwk.com/breakingNews/INW20021004S0001Content-management vendor Documentum said late Thursday it plans to acquire
privately held e-Room Technologies in a deal worth about $100 million.Documentum will issue approximately 7.7 million shares of its common stock
and pay about $12.6 million in cash for all of the outstanding shares of
eRoom.Documentum makes a platform for enterprise-wide content management. ERoom
makes tools for enterprise collaboration. Its customers include Airbus,
Bausch & Lomb, Ford Motor Co., and Sony.Documentum announced plans this summer to deliver a new Collaboration
Edition of its content-management suite. ERoom was already integrating its
tools to the Documentum platform, making an acquisition an easy target,
according to Documentum president and CEO Dave DeWalt.With the upcoming joint product, customers will be able to collaborate in
real-time via virtual workspaces, sharing schedules, resources, and even
jointly creating content.Content creation and management has always been a collaborative task, but
workflow has usually been delivered via a Web browser interface or even
simple e-mail -- and rarely in real-time.For now, Documentum will sell the eRoom platform and its own
content-management system through combined sales channels. Further
integration is planned down the line, the companies said.