IBM acquires Ottawa-based Cognos

Hot on the heels of SAP's deal to buy Business Objects, IBM has acquired Ottawa-based business intelligence software company Cognos. Cognos has 3,500 employees and serves more than 23,000 customers in over 135 countries. IBM has been interested in making a play for Canada's largest software maker for awhile and their $5 Billion acquisition was likely triggered by SAP and Oracle snapping up Cognos' two largest rivals earlier this year. SAP purchased Business Objects last month for $7 Billion and Oracle acquired Hyperion Solutions for $3.3 billion in April. Business intelligence software is becoming less and less a separate category of products as major players continue to get picked up by larger companies.