Teradata
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Software, Enterprise software, Cloud computing |
| Founded | January 1, 1979 in Brentwood, California, U.S. |
| Founder | Jack E. Shemer, Philip M. Neches |
| Headquarters | San Diego, California , United States |
Area served | Worldwide (North and Latin America, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia) |
Key people | Steve McMillan (CEO) |
| Products | Cloud database solutions, analytics software, data warehousing hardware and software, consulting services |
| Owner | Publicly traded company (NYSE: TDC) |
Number of employees | 8,535 (2019) |
| Website | www |
Teradata Corporation is a U.S.-based software enterprise that specializes in cloud database solutions and analytics software, along with related products and services. Established in 1979 in Brentwood, California through a partnership between researchers from Caltech and Citibank's technology division, Teradata has grown into a prominent entity within the enterprise software industry.
Overview
Teradata focuses on developing and selling database analytics software, emphasizing business intelligence, cloud-based offerings, and consulting services. The company operates globally, covering regions such as North and Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. Its corporate headquarters are located in San Diego, California, with significant U.S. facilities in Atlanta and San Francisco, where its data center research and development activities are concentrated. Teradata is publicly listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol TDC.
Since 2020, Steve McMillan has held the position of CEO, providing strategic direction to foster business expansion and enhance market presence. In 2019, Teradata reported revenues of $1.836 billion and a net profit of $129 million, employing roughly 8,535 individuals worldwide. Its suite of products includes solutions for data warehousing, analytics, and big data management tailored to enterprise clients.
History
Teradata’s origins trace back to research at the California Institute of Technology combined with initiatives within Citibank’s advanced technology group during the 1970s. The company was incorporated in 1979 in Brentwood, California by founders such as Jack E. Shemer and Philip M. Neches. In 1984, Teradata introduced its DBC/1012 database machine, securing Citibank as an early adopter. The acquisition of Sharebase (previously known as Britton Lee) in 1990 marked Teradata’s expansion beyond IBM mainframe systems into midrange computing platforms. Following AT&T Corporation’s purchase of NCR Corporation in 1991, NCR announced its $250 million acquisition of Teradata later that year. Notably, Teradata developed the first system surpassing 1 terabyte for Wal-Mart in 1992.
NCR further enhanced Teradata’s portfolio through several acquisitions: Strategic Technologies & Systems in 1999; Ceres Integrated Solutions for $90 million in 2000, adding customer relationship management capabilities; and demand chain management software from Stirling Douglas Group also in 2000. In 2005, Teradata acquired financial management software from DecisionPoint. January 2007 saw NCR spin off Teradata into an independent public company led by CEO Michael F. Koehler, with shares becoming publicly traded starting October.
In April 2016, Teradata launched its IntelliFlex hardware series coinciding with Victor L. Lund’s appointment as CEO in May of that year. By October 2018, the company advanced its cloud analytics offerings through Vantage—a platform evolved from the original Teradata Database—to strengthen its presence in cloud computing. On June 8, 2020, Steve McMillan assumed the roles of president and CEO to steer the company through shifting market conditions.
In December 2024, Teradata secured a pivotal legal victory on appeal against SAP SE concerning allegations of trade secret theft and antitrust violations. The federal appellate court overturned a previous decision favoring SAP, reinstating Teradata’s claims related to SAP’s bundling strategies and unauthorized use of proprietary technology—underscoring Teradata’s commitment to safeguarding its intellectual property and maintaining competitive positioning.
Acquisitions and divestitures
Following its transition to an independent publicly traded company in 2008, Teradata has pursued growth through a series of targeted acquisitions. In March 2008, the company expanded by acquiring the professional services firm Claraview. Later, in August 2010, Teradata purchased Kickfire, a vendor specializing in column-oriented database management systems. That December, it completed a $550 million acquisition of Aprimo, a marketing software provider. In March 2011, Teradata further broadened its portfolio by acquiring Aster Data Systems for roughly $263 million. Continuing its emphasis on marketing solutions, the company acquired eCircle, a SaaS digital marketing firm, in May 2012, integrating it within Aprimo.
The year 2014 saw Teradata acquire Revelytix’s assets for approximately $50 million and enhance its big data consulting expertise through the purchase of Think Big Analytics, a Hadoop service provider, in September. In December of the same year, it acquired RainStor, a company focused on Hadoop-based data archiving. Early in 2015, Teradata added Appoxxee, a mobile marketing SaaS provider, to its holdings for about $20 million. This was followed by acquisitions of FLXone, a digital marketing firm based in the Netherlands, and MiaPearl, a business intelligence company.
In July 2016, Teradata divested its marketing applications segment—including Aprimo—selling it to Marlin Equity Partners for close to $90 million, notably below previous valuations. Following this transaction, Aprimo relocated its headquarters to Chicago under CEO John Stammen. Concurrently that month, Teradata acquired Big Data Partnership from the UK to bolster its global services capabilities. Further enhancing its cloud portfolio in July 2017, Teradata acquired StackIQ, known for its cluster management software Stacki.
These strategic acquisitions and divestitures illustrate Teradata’s approach to expanding analytics and big data expertise while optimizing its business portfolio to improve market presence and financial results worldwide.
Technology and products
Teradata’s principal products encompass both cloud-based and hardware data warehousing solutions alongside business analytics and consulting services. In September 2016, the company introduced Teradata Everywhere, which allows users to execute queries across public and private databases utilizing massively parallel processing on physical data warehouses as well as cloud environments including Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, VMware, Teradata Managed Cloud, and IntelliFlex. The firm supports hybrid and multi-cloud storage architectures. March 2017 marked the launch of IntelliCloud—a secure managed cloud service designed to work seamlessly with the IntelliFlex data warehouse platform. Additionally, the Teradata Analytics Platform was unveiled in 2017 to advance self-service analytics functionality.
Big data
Teradata embraced the concept of "big data" starting in 2010 when CTO Stephen Brobst emphasized emerging media channels such as social media as significant contributors. The rapid growth of semi-structured and unstructured datasets prompted Teradata to create the "Petabyte club" in 2011, recognizing its largest big data customers. To augment its big data offerings further, Teradata acquired Aster Data Systems in 2011—gaining access to MapReduce technology and enhanced capabilities for analyzing semi-structured information—an essential element of its strategy to sustain leadership within the evolving data warehousing sector.
Discontinuation of support for legacy hardware
In order to concentrate on its cloud database and analytics software offerings, Teradata is phasing out support for its older hardware platforms. After each platform is officially discontinued from sales, maintenance services will continue to be provided for a period of six years. The process of ending support commenced in 2017 with the retirement of the 2580 data warehouse appliance series. At present, only the IntelliFlex 2.5 and R740 hardware systems are classified as "current products," while all other models have established end-of-support timelines. Customers may apply for extended support options, which require approval from the local Area Director; however, the availability of replacement parts for outdated platforms is increasingly scarce.
Teradata Vantage analytics platform
Introduced in October 2018, Teradata's Vantage is a comprehensive cloud analytics software suite that combines several processing engines—including the Aster graph database and machine learning components—built upon a foundational relational database. It accommodates integration with open-source frameworks such as Spark and TensorFlow, facilitating sophisticated analytical functions. Vantage can be deployed across public cloud environments, on-premises setups, and standard hardware infrastructures, offering scalable data storage and analysis capabilities for a wide array of data types. This product exemplifies Teradata’s strategic shift toward enhancing its software portfolio to strengthen its position in cloud analytics and data-centric business solutions.