If SAP's fourth-quarter sales figures are any indication, the market for ERP software is quite healthy.

The Walldorf, Germany-based ERP software leader reported banner results for the quarter and full year, and the profile sounded much as it did in the days before the global recession took the energy out of the enterprise applications market. Total revenue for SAP was up 29 percent. Sales of its ERP software and related products were up 35 percent year over year. Support and maintenance contracts for those ERP products were also up significantly in the quarter, rising 21 percent.

The double-digit surge in ERP sales was enough for Gartner Research analyst Jim Shepherd to declare, in the title of a recent research note, "Big ERP Is Back: SAP and Oracle Finally Return to Pre-Recession Revenue Levels."

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