The smart money in software companies lately has been on business intelligence. Two of the biggest names in BI have been acquired in recent weeks -- SAP picked up Business Objects for $6.8 billion, and then IBM Corp. followed suit by acquiring Cognos for $5 billion (Cognos, in fact, had just announced its acquisition of analytics solution provider Applix).
In March 2007, Oracle Corp. jump-started the BI shuffle through its purchase of Hyperion. Bruce Richardson, research director at AMR Research Inc., predicts that either MicroStrategy or Informatica could be the next BI firms to be acquired as the market cap for both companies is currently over $1 billion. Other possible acquisition targets include privately-held SAS Institute and Information Builders, according to Richardson.
The following scorecard highlights significant corporate moves in the supply chain technology sector since our last update in the September 2007 IW.
| Company/Product | Parent Company | Transaction Type | Technology |
| Applix Inc. | Cognos | acquisition | analytics |
| BEA Systems | Oracle Corp. | acquisition offer (unsolicited) | middleware |
| Business Objects | SAP | acquisition | business intelligence |
| Catalyst International Inc. | CDC Software | acquisition | warehouse management systems |
| CoCreate Software | PTC | acquisition | product lifecycle management systems |
| Cognos | IBM Corp. | acquisition | business intelligence |
| GE Fanuc | GE Fanuc Intelligent platforms | name change | factory automation systems |
| Global Freight Exchange | Descartes Systems Group | acquisition | electronic freight bookings |
| Hand Held Products Inc. | Honeywell International | acquisition | automatic ID/data collection |
| Integrated Support Decision Corp. | TMW Systems Inc. | acquisition | transportation decision support |
| Logistics Business Systems (LBS) | PTC | acquisition | logistics support solutions |
| Maximum Data Solutions Inc. | Accellos Inc. | acquisition | automated data collection |
| Printronix Inc. | Vector Capital | acquisition | enterprise printing solutions |
| Procuri Inc. | Ariba Inc. | acquisition | supply management |
| Seemage | Dassault Systemes | acquisition | product documentation |
| YASU Technologies | SAP | acquisition | business rules management |
See Also
About the Author
Dave Blanchard
Senior Director of Content
Focus: Supply Chain
Call: (941) 208-4370
Follow on Twitter @SupplyChainDave
During his career Dave Blanchard has led the editorial management of many of Endeavor Business Media's best-known brands, including IndustryWeek, EHS Today, Material Handling & Logistics, Logistics Today, Supply Chain Technology News, and Business Finance. He also serves as senior content director of the annual Safety Leadership Conference. With over 30 years of B2B media experience, Dave literally wrote the book on supply chain management, Supply Chain Management Best Practices (John Wiley & Sons, 2010), which has been translated into several languages and is currently in its second edition. He is a frequent speaker and moderator at major trade shows and conferences, and has won numerous awards for writing and editing. He is a voting member of the jury of the Logistics Hall of Fame, and is a graduate of Northern Illinois University.