The company said the WebSphere Portal Server serves as the software foundation for building applications and services that reside within a portal, best known as a common entry point for business users who need to share information regardless of where the information resides.
The new portal server offering is said to simplify the creation and delivery of portal components by using service-oriented architecture (SOA), an approach that reuses a company's existing technology systems to more closely align them with its business goals, resulting in greater efficiencies, cost savings and productivity. For example, a people finder or awareness feature found in instant messaging products such as Lotus Sametime can be added to a call center application to help match a returning customer with a previously-known customer service representative.
