Oracle announced today that it has agreed to acquire Art Technology Group (ATG), a leading provider of ecommerce software and related on-demand commerce optimization applications, through a cash merger for $6 per share, or approximately $1 billion. ATG’s solutions enable enterprises to provide a cohesive online customer experience with sophisticated merchandising, marketing, content personalization, automated recommendations, and live-help services.

ATG’s ecommerce software platform is the industry’s top-ranked, cross-channel commerce solution and is highly complementary to Oracle’s CRM, ERP, retail, and supply chain applications, as well as its portfolio of middleware and business intelligence technologies. ATG also offers on demand commerce optimization applications that provide companies with an online presence, the ability to improve customer satisfaction through immediate service response and automated recommendations.

Together Oracle and ATG expect to help businesses grow revenue, strengthen customer loyalty, improve brand value, achieve better operating results, and increase business agility across online and traditional commerce environments.

The transaction is subject to stockholder and regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions and is expected to close by early 2011.

“Driven by the convergence of online and traditional commerce and the need to increase revenue and improve customer loyalty, organizations across many industries are looking for a unified commerce and CRM platform to provide a seamless experience across all commerce channels,” said Thomas Kurian, executive vice president Oracle Development. “Bringing together the complementary technologies and products from Oracle and ATG will enable the delivery of next-generation, unified cross-channel commerce and CRM.”

“More than 1,000 global enterprises rely on ATG’s solutions to help increase the value of their online customer interactions,” said Bob Burke, president and CEO of ATG. “This combination will enhance the ability to bring all their commerce activities together–creating a more consistent and relevant experience for their customers across all interaction channels, including online, in stores, via mobile devices, and with call centers.”

“The addition of ATG, which brings market-leading products used by some of the largest and most well-known retailers and brands, furthers Oracle’s strategy of delivering industry-specific enterprise applications,” said Bob Weiler, executive vice president, Oracle Global Business Units. “This acquisition builds upon our dedication to offer the most complete and integrated suite of best-of-breed software applications and technologies required to power the most demanding companies in the world in every industry.”

ATG's revenue for the third quarter of 2010 grew to $50.3 million, a 16 percent increase over third quarter 2009 revenue of $43.4 million, the company reported

About ATG, Inc.

ATG (Nasdaq: ARTG) provides advanced cross-channel commerce software and services to fuel the growth of the world's best brands. Offering the industry's leading commerce solution, ATG works in partnership with clients to drive sales via a personalized customer experience--unifying and optimizing interactions across the Web, contact center, mobile devices, social media, physical stores, and other key channels. Exclusively focused on online and cross-channel commerce, ATG is uniquely capable of powering the most innovative and successful commerce experiences, with results that outperform industry norms. ATG Commerce is the commerce platform and business user application solution top-rated by industry analysts for powering results-driven, personalized, and innovative ecommerce sites. ATG's platform-neutral optimization solutions for live help, lead performance, and product recommendations can be easily added to any website to quickly and measurably grow revenue, boost loyalty, and unlock profits and insight. ATG is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with additional locations throughout North America and Europe. For more information, visit http://www.atg.com.

About Oracle

Oracle is a complete, open, and integrated business software and hardware systems company. For more information about Oracle, visit http://www.oracle.com.