Oracle launches e-government initiative

Part of the company's strategy involves releasing a public sector version of e-Valuator

The Oracle Corp., one of the world's largest software providers, last week

announced the launch of a global initiative aimed at helping governments

go electronic.

Oracle, based in Redwood Shores, Calif., made the announcement on Super

Tuesday to help illustrate the connection between the worlds of politics

and technology. And "connecting" is the key concept in the company's three-pronged

approach for designing effective e-governments: connecting government employees,

connecting citizens, and connecting businesses, said Jay Nussbaum, executive

vice president of Oracle Service Industries.

As part of the leadership initiative, Oracle in June will release a government

version of its e-Valuator interactive software tool now used to help companies

assess the potential dollar value of e-business for a potential firm, said

an Oracle spokesman.

"In the U.S. alone this year, we'll see the first Internet-enabled census,

the first legally-binding election over the Internet and online tax filing

services provided by more and more states," Nussbaum said in a release.

"Now, with governments worldwide having emerged safely through the "Y2K

lock-down,' industry analysts are predicting explosive growth in the market

for e-government technology."