Oracle on Thursday reported financial results for the three-month period ending Feb. 28, saying profit was dragged down by restructuring charges incurred in the wake of the company's purchase of Sun Microsystems, which closed in January. Earnings declined by 10 percent compared to the year-earlier quarter, to US$1.2 billion.

However, new license sales, key to the growth of any software company, increased 13 percent to $1.7 billion. Total revenue was up 17 percent to $6.4 billion.

Oracle shares declined by $0.27 to $25.82 in after-market trading after the announcement, possibly because investors wanted to see stronger earnings. The bellwether software vendor's revenue increases, however, indicate that enterprise software sales are picking up.

Red Hat, reporting quarterly results on Wednesday, also had a good sales story to tell. Total revenue for the three-month period ending Feb. 28 was $195.9 million, an 18 percent increase from a year earlier. Net income for the quarter was $23.4 million, compared with $16.4 million a year earlier.