Microsoft purchase Fast Search for $1.2 billion
Microsoft are to buy search technology company Fast Search & Transfer (FAST) in a $1.2 billion deal.
Fast Search, based in Norway, are leaders in the field of ‘enterprise search’ - search technology that enables corporations to quickly search for information held in vast databases.
“Enterprise search is becoming an indispensable tool to businesses of all sizes, helping people find, use and share critical business information quickly,” says Jeff Raikes of Microsoft’s Business Division.
“Until now organisations have been forced to choose between powerful, high-end search technologies or more mainstream, infrastructure solutions. The combination of Microsoft and FAST gives customers a new choice: a single vendor with solutions that span the full range of customer needs.” he continued.
In acquiring FAST, Microsoft will hope to challenge fellow computing giants Google and IBM, whose respective products (Search Appliance and OmniFind) are popular products in the Enterprise Search market.
Lynda Moulton, analyst for Gilbane Group, commented that “[The] acquisition of FAST, whose technology is certainly the most widely deployed at the high-end, opens up a direct challenge to Google,”
Microsoft’s purchase of FAST, at a full 42 percent above premium on the company’s share price, is likely to signal the start of a round of consolidation in the sector which research firm Gartner estimate will grow in value 12 percent this year to $913 million. The next big target seems likely to be leading independent Autonomy.
“By buying FAST, Microsoft gets instant credibility in business-intelligence software aimed at professional users. Other companies will likely follow suit.” commented analyst for London based Ovum.
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