The reason is Oracle's sales technique, which basically involves threatening customers with expensive software audits and strongly suggesting those customers could solve their problems by moving to the cloud.

Several big Oracle customers, including oil and gas exploration company Halliburton, toy maker Mattel and electricity provider Edison Southern California, have recently rejected big cloud services deals proposed by Oracle.

It’s not only the cloud deals that are upsetting customers. The costs of Oracle software are another issue. A person who resells Oracle products said his overall sales have been declining for several quarters and are around where they were five years ago. In addition to being frustrated by audits, he said customers are looking for Oracle alternatives, because they feel its products are too expensive—particularly the ongoing “maintenance” fees for updates to applications.

"There is a huge struggle going on between Oracle and many of their clients. Oracle is pushing cloud everywhere, even where customers don’t want it and can’t use it."