Briefs

By Jeff Kelly, 09 Jan 2008 | SearchDataManagement.com

Microsoft Corp. has bid $1.2 billion to acquire Fast Search & Transfer ASA, the Norwegian-based enterprise search and business intelligence (BI) vendor, the companies announced Tuesday.

While the acquisition itself was not completely unexpected, the price tag came as a shock to one analyst. Still, the move could prove a lucrative one as the enterprise search market is poised for growth.

Representing a 42% premium, the $3.54 per share offer is the latest in a string of acquisitions in the ever-consolidating BI market. Last year, Oracle bought corporate performance management specialist Hyperion, while SAP and IBM are awaiting approval to acquire BI vendors Business Objects and Cognos, respectively.

Enterprise search software and applications help employees locate documents and other data often hidden deep inside corporate networks and databases. When integrated with BI, enterprise search tools can help end users find reports and information faster, according to a 2007 report from the Data Warehousing Institute.

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