Last week I was pre-briefed on the release of Oracle EPM 11.1.2.  While the release number looks like a minor release (you would expect at least 11.2.0 for a major release), Oracle was adamant that this is indeed a major release.  Accord to Hari Sankar, VP Product Management EPM Products, this is the most significant EPM release in 4-5 years, and I don't disagree.  Oracle (and SAP and IBM for that matter) have spent a lot of time and resources integrating their major acquisitions over the last several years but we are now seeing some significant functional releases come to fruition.

Vertical applications are becoming the norm
The most noteworthy component of this release for me is Public Sector Budgeting and Planning.  Why?  Because it continues the trend towards purpose-built performance management applications.  It seems every press release from a performance management or BI vendor is highlighting success in, or a new release targeted at, a specific industry vertical.  Most vendors, big and small, are jumping onto the vertical industry bandwagon.

What verticalization means to potential customers
Prospective customers should do their due diligence on what vertical applications are on the market for their particular industry and make sure at least one of these vertical applications gets on the evaluation "long-list".  Prospects in some industries, like financial services, may actually find that their entire short-list is comprised of vendors with purpose-built financial services applications.

There is probably an industry solution for your organization
Unless your organization is in some completely obscure industry you should be investigating purpose-built applications targeted at your industry.  These vertical solutions tend to save cost and duration on implementation; bring to bear services domain expertise; promote peer networking; and generate greater influence on product road maps.  There are a lot of vertical solutions and modules out there, from large vendors and small, such as:
Financial Services
Public Sector
Legal
Airlines
Higher Education
Retail
Manufacturing
Life Sciences
Insurance
and any more...

It should be a "why not" decision
If there is a vertical application available for your industry I would suggest going in with a "why not a vertical application" attitude.  But it is up to you to make sure the application lives up to its hype.  Make sure the vendor can take the application through its paces as it relates to your industry; that there are domain experts available for implementation; consider how the application would it need to be "tweaked" for your environment; and find out who else is using it (it's OK to be a guinea pig but only if it is a conscious decision).

But understand the risk
A  vertical solution may be less mature than the vendor's generic PM applications and may not be subjected to the same level of testing.  Some vertical solutions are starter kits or delivered as a services solution rather than packaged applications.  Prospects should inquire about support terms for the vertical application and speak to references before selecting a vertical application.  In any case it is not realistic to expect a completely "plug 'n play" vertical application.  Regardless of how specific the application is to your industry there will be at least some configuration or customization required.