Out of the Autonomy Frying Pan and into the OpenText Fire?
I note with interest that OpenText is offering a a "software trade-in" for Autonomy customers.
Earlier today, Kashyap analyzed whether incumbent Autonomy customers should consider any switch at all. If you do find yourself wanting to switch, you'll want to carefully evaluate a broad range of choices, especially since most OpenText offerings don't match up neatly with Autonomy's.
Perhaps a bigger issue is that OpenText suffers from many of the same underlying diseases as Autonomy. To be sure, OpenText has not been run by a megalomaniac, and I've never heard any hint of financial or stock manipulation at the Canadian ECM vendor. Nonetheless, like Autonomy, OpenText is fundamentally a roll-up company, focused more on buying smaller vendors than developing and integrating those systems into a more coherent whole. This can bring short-term returns, but I believe is a highly suspect long-term strategy for customers.
In the meantime, as our subscribers know, most (though not all) OpenText offerings lag their more nimble competitors. Consult RSG's individual reports for more deail.
I don't hear HP saying that will discontinue support for Autonomy. And I doubt they will (though they could sell off bits of it), at least not anytime soon. So if you license Autonomy products today, my advice is: take your time, consider a wide array options with care, then be deliberate (and informed) about whether and how you switch.