Benchmark International 
Archives
Technology-related mergers and acquisitions are set to remain robust over the next 12 months, according to the recent semi-annual leaders’ poll from law firm Morrison & Foerster’s global M&A team. In spite of something of a slowing-down of the M&A market generally in recent months, with tech deals globally having fallen in the first three quarters of the year and a deal-making plateau predicted in some quarters, tech leaders are of the… Read More
California-based Hewlett Packard Enterprise has been busy bolstering its portfolio to stay ahead in cloud computing, with even more acquisitions on the horizon. This year, the company revealed purchases worth more than $1.5 billion and is looking to boost demand for server and storage products in order to stay ahead of competitors, such as Dell and Amazon.com. These recent acquisitions come after CEO, Meg Whitman, split the computer and printer business and… Read More
Following news last week that Apple had completed a deal to acquire sleep-tracking device company Beddit, the tech behemoth has completed yet another acquisition in the form of Lattice.io. In a higher profile deal than Beddit, Apple revealed it had acquired the artificial intelligence and machine learning start-up, which takes dark data and turns it into useable information. While no official information was released as to the value of the deal, it’s… Read More
Last week it was revealed that Apple had completed a low-key deal to acquire Beddit, a Finnish company that makes sleep-tracking devices compatible with apps for both iOS and the Apple Watch. News of the acquisition was broken by CNBC which reported that the privacy section of the Beddit website had been updated to note the deal and confirm that all consumer data is now subject to Apple’s own privacy policy. Beddit… Read More
Online education platform Udacity has completed its first ever acquisition with its purchase of CloudLab for an undisclosed figure. With its specialism in tech-related nanodegrees – vocational qualifications that can be achieved faster and cost less than traditional degrees – Udacity plans to use CloudLab’s platform to allow users to code interactively and collaboratively from within their browsers. Udacity also has grand plans to implement CloudLab’s live developer environments into its courses… Read More
When it comes to M&A security breaches can be costly in more ways than one. Yahoo!’s expectations of a smooth transition in the Verizon takeover have been scuppered with the news that the acquiring company was not prepared to offer the full asking price. The timeline of the Yahoo! and Verizon takeover has certainly been colourful. The headlines began in 2014 with what was the biggest data breach in history where the… Read More
We’re just over a month into 2017 and already rumours are circulating about a magical mega deal set to take place this year. Despite the lack of evidence to back-up a Disney acquisition of Netflix, there has been much discussion throughout the industry about whether such an acquisition can and will actually happen. Worth $56 billion, Netflix is the world’s biggest subscription-streaming service, with more than 80 million paying customers. This elevated… Read More
“We have more technology in our watch now, than I had in my first big servers,” said Ann Zdansky, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of The Common Source, an award-winning provider of on-line document hosting, electronic discovery (e-discovery), litigation support, and document management services. When Zdansky started the business in 1997, no one else was performing these services. She was able to grow the business significantly, but with her husband’s recent retirement, she… Read More
Benchmark International is a company dedicated to the successful sale of companies, and since our inception, we have helped many business owners through the process of growing or exiting a business. By making the client our number one priority and being willing to get our hands dirty to do whatever it takes to secure a deal completion, we set the bar for success. In 2016, the Benchmark International team had the opportunity… Read More
In 2014, Facebook acquired WhatsApp in a deal worth $19bn. However, more than two years later, the social media giant has been accused of providing EU regulators with misleading information during its takeover of the mobile messaging service. Europe’s main regulator, the European Commission, has stated that it is investigating whether Facebook withheld information regarding its ability to siphon data from WhatsApp. If the investigation confirms what the Commission suspects, Facebook could… Read More
Despite major political disruption from events such as Britain leaving the EU and the election of a new president of the United States, 2016 is gearing up to be the biggest year for M&A deal announcements since 2007. According to the Intralinks Deal Flow Predictor, which has a proven track record for accuracy, there will be a three per cent increase in the total number of M&A deals to be announced globally… Read More
Benchmark International is pleased to have advised on an agreed deal for the sale of Web Age Limited to Cloudstream Technology Limited. Formed in 1996, Web Age Limited handle the server hardware, data centres, multi-homed bandwidth, the web site hosting, web design and eCommerce development and the Internet marketing and search engine optimization. Ultimately, they have full control over the entire Internet Marketing Chain. As a business they have a breadth of… Read More
For those who regularly engage in M&A, a large majority of them have begun to make technology-driven data analytics a crucial part of their toolbox, whether in the initial search for potential targets or other elements of the due diligence process. The term is one that is widely used for technology solutions to aid businesses interpret data as well as analyse business trends. Additionally, it provides a level of both sophistication and… Read More
As one of the world’s largest companies and home to what is arguably the most successful consumer electrical product of all time, Apple which has forged a name as a technology giant, comfortably sits on a cash stockpile of $233bn. So, what does a company in this position do to continue on their path to technology and media world dominance? Recent rumours have surfaced that Apple is seeking to expand their empire… Read More