<A HREF="http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/22446.wss">IBM introduced IBM Master Data Management Server,</A> the first software product to allow companies to manage many types of master data as a strategic business asset in a service-oriented architecture. The IBM Master Data Management Server was designed to centrally manage master data concerning customers, products, and accounts, and help organizations define, access, and use that data in real-time. IBM also announced that it will offer a beta testing program for the new software.

Businesses have historically tackled managing master data by using existing business applications that hold some customer, product, or account-specific data, but are not designed to manage master data as an enterprise-wide asset. Because of this, organizations have found it difficult to design and implement enterprise processes that rely on accurate, complete, and consistent master data.