Blackpool acts to avoid fall of Pericles

A group of 10 councils led by Blackpool is rushing to find a replacement for the Anite Pericles revenues and benefits system. The authorities estimate they will spend between £1m and £5m on replacing their Pericles systems. Northgate, which bought Anite in August 2008, is discontinuing the software next year. Blackpool …

[Anonymous Coward]

Who's willing to bet...

..next year headline will be...

10 councils IT systems in chaos as staff complain unable to process orders and angry customers unable to get cash..

[Richard Porter]

Why?

I mean why do these councils need to replace Pericles all of a sudden?

[Anonymous Coward]

Ahh Northgate...

Here's hoping for the sake of all those council's sanity they don't go with another Northgate product. Nothing can quite express the despair of finding you have to work with their stuff...

[4a$$Monkey]

Sponging benefits claimants

Computer says no.

[Simon C]

hmmm

In terms of IT the statement "is rushing to find a replacement" is most certainly an oxymoron.

Rushing to find an adjustable spanner - sure pretty generic

Rushing to find a car - again pretty generic, all the added bits are superfluous to the fact that it can drive.

Rushing to find an IT system - now there's a timebomb just ticking down.

If there had been closer links with the developers of the software, you would have at least got wind of the software roadmap and where it ends, prompting a more thorough investigation into a suitable replacement.

And if the reg hack is not sensationalising the report (ala Daily Fail) and they are rushing - then Epic Fail is only a short time away.

/schhtop - the product specification is not ready yet.

[Paul 37]

Eh?

It's not like the software is going to disappear in a puff of logic. If there are 10 medium size councils using it that sounds like a sustainable market for a small(ish) business - why isn't somone (maybe even the councils) buying the rights and the source code ?

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Eh?

"why isn't somone (maybe even the councils) buying the rights and the source code ?"

Don't you know there's a recession on? Council executive bonuses don't pay themselves, you know ...

[TeeCee]

@Paul 37

'Cos then they'd have to get some people in to look after it and maybe some more to enhance it when things change. They might find (no shit Sherlock) that this was cheaper than whatever maintenance contract / outsourcing deal they're running at the moment. This might then catch on, the big software houses / service providers could have to tighten their belts and Government ministers would then miss out on loads of free lunches, backhanders and expensed trips to <insert idyllic holiday destination> on "fact finding" exercises.

Worst case scenario is that they could end up saving so much on IT that they'd have a budget surplus and have to consider the nuclear option of not raising council tax, thus running the risk of being lambasted in a Grauniad editorial for service cutbacks.

You have to understand the terrible unforeseen effects that an approach like that, while initially seeming sensible, could have.

[Paul Schofield]

Re: Eh?

To quote Pratchett...

'Special rate for government jobs,' the dwarf muttered.

'Oh, but I wouldn't dream of paying any less that other customers,' said the Patrician.

'I wasn't going to charge you less that-'

[Anonymous Coward]

Northgate

If they're the same Northgate who make the SearchNET system all I can say is FAIL!

Enter isn't Enter. F12 is Enter. Everyone knows that...

[ss002]

A move in the wrong direction

Great move by Northgate to buy out a competitor and then shut it down as a method of shifting 10 authorities on to its own PITA system.

[Lost in a maze of twisty messages, all alike.]

Sounds like a market niche

We could call the new company "international computers unlimited", or something