IBM To Buy CrossAccess

Santa Clara, Calif.-based CrossAccess is privately held, and terms of the deal were not disclosed.

CrossAccess' software assets will bolster the ability of IBM's Information Integrator to tap into non-IBM data, including data residing in Computer Associates and Adabas databases, said a spokeswoman from IBM Software, Somers, N.Y.

The acquisition is expected to close by the end of the month. The move comes at a time when IBM and its software group are cutting headcount and tightening the belt in other ways.

Businesses today now rely on myriad data sources and "are faced with the challenge to drive more value from their existing information assets," said Janet Perna, general manager of IBM Data Management Software, in a statement.

IBM has been on a bit of a buying binge, purchasing 12 companies in the past two years. Last November, it bought Tarian to bolster its content management game plan. Within a month, it announced its blockbuster $2.1 billion buy out of Rational Software. In April 2001, it bought Informix. That purchase, like the Tarian deal, was meant to bolster the company's data management efforts.

Other software acquisitions include Metamerge, Trellisoft, Access360 and Aptrix.

The CrossAccess technology should help IBM put more data sources within its Information Integrator's reach. The first version of the DB2-based http://crn.channelsupersearch.com/news/crn/42051.asp Information Integrator started shipping last spring. Future iterations will include more data sources.