OPEN ENTERPRISE: Oracle wins big with its Innobase acquisition - When it comes to competing with MySQL, why beat 'em when you can make 'em join you?(Column)

To the faithful, Oracle's acquisition of key MySQL partner Innobase is proof of what they've believed all along: MySQL's success is a threat to Oracle's database business and it's only a matter of time before the two companies collide.

On the other hand, what if you're not a believer? Suppose you've been using databases long enough to realize that MySQL's capabilities aren't even remotely comparable to Oracle's, and that the customers who rely on Oracle for mission-critical business would no more replace their databases with MySQL than an accountant would give up Excel for a pocket calculator. What should you make of the Innobase acquisition then?

I'm not …