Dell buys IT asset-management firm
Dell said on Thursday that it was spending around $340m (£167m) to buy Asap Software, a software asset-management company, as part of an effort to simplify how customers can communicate with the company.
Asap is one of the leading software asset management (SAM) companies, with offices in the US and France. SAM is becoming increasingly important as legislation such as Sarbanes-Oxley and pressure from organisations such as Microsoft and the Business Software Alliance puts increasing pressure on companies to maintain compliance.
The acquisition will "strengthen Dell's existing software business by integrating Asap's complementary expertise in managing software licensing, purchasing, renewals, and compliance", Dell said. Dell said it anticipated closing the deal in the third quarter of this financial year.
According to David Marmonti, president of Dell EMEA, the acquisition will mean that Dell customers "will have one of the world's leading software-solutions providers as a single point of expertise and accountability for software licensing, compliance, renewal and asset management".
Asap's subsidiary, License Technologies Group, specialises in licensing and e-commerce services for software publishers and their partners.