IBM pays $5 billion for Cognos Inc.
IBM Corp. is making its largest acquisition ever, a deal announced Monday to buy Cognos Inc. for $5 billion in cash in hopes of keeping up with rivals in “business intelligence” software.
The acquisition would follow similar moves in the same market this year. SAP AG recently linked up with Business Objects SA for $7 billion, and Oracle Corp. grabbed Hyperion Solutions Corp. for $3.3 billion. Cognos shares had soared recently on expectations that it, too, would be acquired. They leaped another 8 percent on Monday’s news.
Business-intelligence software helps big organizations gather data in “dashboards” that can be used to model such things as the financial impact of staffing changes or marketing moves.
Because that capability meshes with other things business software does, big vendors like SAP, Oracle and IBM have moved to include business-intelligence applications in their product packages.
•Ann Taylor Stores Corp. said Monday it is launching a line of beauty-care products at all 350 of its Ann Taylor stores and through the AnnTaylor.com Web site.
The New York-based retailer of women’s clothing said the new collection, Beauty, includes a fragrance named Possibilities and other products.
The company plans to expand its presence in the beauty-care market over time, including a line of products to be sold at Ann Taylor Loft stores in 2008.
Czech model Petra Nemcova was named “the face” of Possibilities, according to Ann Taylor Stores.
Shares of Ann Taylor Stores rose 99 cents, or 3.2 percent, to close at $31.52 Monday.
•Miller Brewing Co.’s Latin-inspired brew is heading to Australia, marking the new beer’s first entry into a market outside the U.S.
Miller Chill has done so well domestically since its release earlier this year that the company decided to export it to Australia, spokesman Julian Green said Monday.
The beer brewed with hints of lime and salt is part of the Milwaukee-based brewer’s effort to promote premium brands as domestic sales of mainstream brews like Miller Genuine Draft slip.
The beer will be available in bottles in 7,500 stores in Australia starting Monday, with plans to expand that next year, Green said. It will be brewed in the U.S. and shipped to Australia.
Like Americans, Australians want to trade up to newer, more expensive beers, Green said.
The timing of the launch coincides with the start of summer in the Southern Hemisphere. The beer was launched in the U.S. this summer.