The leading solution on HP 3000s for retail and ecommerce is getting a new owner. RedPrairie, a company serving inventory, workforce and transport solutions to manufacturers, distributors and retailers, finalized its purchase Escalate Retail last week. Escalate has served users of Ecometry's ecommerce and POS software since buying that company in 2006. Price for the acquisition was not announced; both RedPrairie and Escalate are privately-held.

RedPrairie's CEO Mike Mayoras said the acquisition is going to help the company sell its workforce and inventory products to retailers. "We have enhanced our ability to leverage our Workforce and Inventory Management solutions to help retailers optimize inventory and fulfillment processes," he said, "regardless of where the order is in the supply chain."

From the Ecometry customer's perspective, "The consumer has evolved," said Stewart Bloom, CEO of Escalate Retail. "More than ever, consumers are using a number of different channels to interact with retailers outside of the store from online and mobile devices, to call centers and social media among others. Our merging with RedPrairie results in unparalleled capabilities to optimize the customer experience, from search to sale to delivery."

Scores of companies are still using HP 3000 versions of Ecometry, even in 2011, while many other customers have moved to the HP-UX and Windows revisions of the app. These customers deploy all-channel commerce solutions (web, catalog and retail) for shopping at more than 400 brands in the retail vertical, including St. John Knits, The Buckle, Hot Topic, Coldwater Creek, Eileen Fisher, and The Louvre.