Vignette updates portal software

Vignette on Wednesday announced new features for its portal product that include enhanced search functions, unified management of multiple portals and improved document-sharing ability.

The update of Vignette Application Portal, which starts at $50,000, lets companies use content and metadata from anywhere across the organization, from file systems to content and document-management systems.

The new features add group-based document development and "productivity portlets," which can work with existing e-mail applications such as Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Notes.

The Austin, Texas?based software maker entered the market for so-called business portal software last year when it acquired software company Epicentric. In February, Vignette released a new version of its business software, Vignette Portal Suites.

Vignette claims to be the third-most implemented portal product in the market, ahead of products from Oracle, Novell, Plumtree and Sun Microsystems, citing a Morgan Stanley CIO Survey conducted last month. Only IBM and internally developed products were ranked higher, Vignette said.