[Bloomberg]
Salesforce.com Inc. introduced an overhauled version of its mobile software, seeking to ensure clients and partners will be able to use more features of the company’s sales, marketing and customer service software.
Called Salesforce1, the new software will make it easier for businesses to customize Salesforce.com’s services for smartphones and tablets, the San Francisco-based company said in a statement today. Application developers will also get better tools to tap into the platform.
The revamp comes as the largest maker of customer-management programs hosts its Dreamforce conference in San Francisco this week and reports fiscal third-quarter earnings today. Chief Executive Officer Marc Benioff is competing with Microsoft Corp., Oracle Corp. and SAP AG in the $20.7 billion market for technology that lets companies manage their customers, while adding newer tools for marketing and client support.
“A lot of the biggest Oracle and SAP customers in the world are running Salesforce,” said Brent Thill, an analyst at UBS AG in San Francisco who has a buy rating on the stock. “They’re building steam, not losing it.”