FileNet Extends its ECM Suite

The embrace of enterprise content management was advanced in early April with FileNet's purchase of eGrail, a Bethesda, MD-based Web content management vendor.

Founded in 1997, eGrail was a struggling startup with roughly $5 million in sales against $8 million in losses last year. Nonetheless, the company's Web content management technology is well regarded by analysts, notably for object-oriented management and ease-of-use for content contributors.

Costa Mesa, CA-based FileNet (www.filenet.com) said the acquisition would shore up the only missing link in its enterprise content management suite. By integrating eGrail with its Brightspire business process management software and Panagon content management suite, FileNet said it will offer a complete set of technology that will be more attractive to large customers than stand-alone Web content management, process automation or document management technologies.

Martyn Christian, FileNet's senior vice president of worldwide marketing, told Transform that by the end of the second quarter, FileNet will integrate eGrail and Panagon with "push" and "pull" access between each content store. Toward the end of the year, he added, there will be "much tighter integration" and "additional functionality" through links between eGrail and Brightspire.

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