April 2, 2012 | Oracle acquired ClearTrial late last week for an undisclosed amount in a deal expected to close in the first half of the year. Oracle hopes to combine ClearTrial's cloud-based clinical trials software offerings with its existing portfolio including tools that came with the 2010 Phase Forward acquisition. ClearTrial's software will give Oracle "leading budgeting, forecasting and analytics capabilities" that can help keep expenses down, Oracle said in a FAQ document on the acquisition. PC World