SQL Server has no multi-version consistency model, which means that “writers block readers and readers block writers” to ensure data integrity. In contrast, with Oracle, the rule is “readers don’t block writers and writers don’t block readers.”
This is possible without compromising data integrity because Oracle will dynamically re-create a read-consistent image for a reader of any requested data that has been changed but not yet committed. In other words, the reader will see the data as it was before the writer began changing it (until the writer commits). SQL Server’s locking scheme is much simpler (less mature) and will result in a lot of delays/waits in a heavy OLTP environment.