IBM Analytics Launches Platform Approach to Data Science
By Daniel Hernandez and Dinesh Nirmal
Portfolio simplification plan combines advanced analytics, data management and governance solutions into three distinct platform offerings for easy management, procurement and scale.
Countless studies, as well as our own field work, tell us that the best-run businesses are data-driven. So why aren’t more companies leveraging their data effectively? For some, the data deluge is overwhelming and simply too complex. For others, while they have data, they may not be extracting the data needed to make the best decisions.
Compounding these challenges is the fact that most data projects are built around aging business processes that stretch the limits of staff, applications, and data infrastructure. On top of all this, they’re being run against a backdrop of mounting regulation.
At IBM, we’ve made it our mission to cut through this complexity and make data simple.
Today we are taking a major step forward in this quest by announcing the consolidation of our business analytics and data management portfolio. Starting today, our IBM Analytics solutions are available in three distinct platform offerings: Hybrid Data Management, Unified Governance & Integration, and Data Science & Business Analytics.
From these platform offerings, customers can easily acquire, integrate and scale the tools and capabilities based on their current needs and growth plan.
Each is designed to help clients quickly understand the core capabilities for data discovery and analysis and more easily acquire them.
Specifically, the three offerings do the following:
- Hybrid Data Management Platform collects, ingests and manages all data no matter the use case, data format, and deployment choice. This platform makes all data accessible to developers.
- Unified Governance & Integration Platform helps clients organize, discover and transform data, dramatically improving its quality and controlling it for regulatory compliance, privacy considerations, and risk mitigation.
- Data Science & Business Analytics Platform is a complete offering that enables clients to explain the past and predict the future, automate mundane tasks, and select the best among a large number of possible scenarios and options. IBM’s unique approach brings analytics to where the data lives.
From a pricing perspective, we’ve streamlined that process as well. Starting today, our portfolio will be available in “FlexPoints,” which users can purchase and apply to any offering within the specific platform.
For example, a customer with 10,000 FlexPoints of “Unified Governance & Integration” can choose to deploy all those points toward our MDM or Data Stage products, or a combination of both. Customers can also move FlexPoints from one product to another within the Platform Offering as their consumption needs change.
Moving to the FlexPoint program will not only dramatically ease procurement and budgeting processes, but also help companies combine and benefit from the wide variety of IBM offerings.
As data continues to increase in value and complexity, we’re confident that this platform approach will make it easier for organizations to begin leveraging the most effective data science and governance solutions in the most strategic and effective ways possible. More than that, this approach will enable businesses to consider new possibilities, try new things and ensure that they and their customers benefit from a data-driven future.
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Platform Details:
Hybrid Data Management Platform: Included — Db2, Db2 Warehouse, Db2 Event Store, Db2 BigSQL.
Unified Governance & Integration Platform: Included — Information Server, BigIntegrate, BigQuality, BigMatch, Information Governance Catalog, Master Data Management, Data Replication, Test Data Fabrication, Info Lifecycle Governance, and Industry Models.
Data Science & Business Analytics Platform: Included — DSX Local, SPSS Modeler, Decision Optimization, Cognos Analytics, Planning Analytics, Watson Explorer (v12 onwards).
Daniel Hernandez is Vice President, IBM Analytics.
Dinesh Nirmal is Vice President, Analytics Development, IBM
