8 Data Analytics Acquisitions That Will Re-Shape the Industry
Big data is big business, and the marketplace for data analytics and business intelligence software is gushing with innovative providers and advanced technologies. The proliferation of enterprise data science has seen an already vibrant landscape grow even brighter, with continued interest from major players and outside firms looking to expand their product portfolios. With millions invested and billions in valuation, analytics and BI providers are emerging as some of the fastest-growing (and most profitable) companies on the planet.
These 8 data analytics acquisitions are the biggest of the year to date. We’ve compiled these news stories into a concise article for you in hopes of helping you paint a more clear picture of the space.
Nordic Capital Fund Buys BOARD International (January)
BOARD’s January announcement saw Nordic Capital acquire a majority stake in the Swiss business intelligence provider. The merger provides BOARD with more financial flexibility to expand its BI and data analytics platform across to globe. Nordic Capital Fund is a private equity investor that focuses on the technology and payments and financial services industries. BOARD was founded in 1994 and touts 26 global offices, 300 employees, and more than 3,000 customers in 100 countries.
Logi Analytics Acquires Jinfonet Software (February)
Logi’s February move to acquire Jinfonet Software (the maker of JReport) makes Logi Analytics one of the major players in the embedded BI space. Logi will presumably integrate Jinfonet’s operational reporting features with its dashboards and self-service analysis and predictive analytics. The move will see Jinfonet merged under the Logi Analytics brand, and represents what the company is calling a “new stage of growth” for them. Logi will add several hundred customers as a result of the deal, as well as expand its reseller partnerships abroad.
Qlik Acquires Data Integration Provider Attunity for $560 Million (February)
When Qlik announced its intent to buy the publicly traded data integration vendor, we thought for sure this would be the biggest deal (based on dollar figure) of the year. Boy were we wrong. The news came on the heels of Qlik’s July 2018 acquisition of Podium Data, which signaled its entrance into the broader data management market. The merger will see Qlik pull in Attunity’s partner network, expanding the company’s reach and strengthening its data lake management and cloud partnerships.
Alteryx Buyers Menlo Park-based ClearStory Data (April)
This deal was the talk of the town in April. ClearStory Data is most known for its smart data discovery and automated data preparation functionality, and raised $15 million in venture capital last March. The acquisition, according to Alteryx, “creates a natural extension to the Alteryx technology center” that will enable the company to continue growing its presence in the data science space. Alteryx plans to use ClearStory’s talent and expertise to continue developing its platform for citizen data scientists.
Sisense and Periscope Data Join Forces in Major BI Merger (May)
Sisense and Periscope Data are two of the more technology forward BI providers in the space, and though the May announcement first came as a surprise, we believe it to be a great match. Sisense has seen its star rise considerably in the crowded BI marketplace since CEO Amir Orad took over in February of 2015. As a result of the deal, Periscope Data founders Harry Glaser and Tom O’Neill and their teams are taking leadership roles in the combined business, which will operate under the Sisense brand.
Looker Becomes the Newest Part of Google Cloud (June)
Google’s deal with Looker is worth a reported $2.6 billion. Looker will join Google Cloud as a result, providing customers a more comprehensive tool for ingesting and integrating data, as well as for embedded analytics and data visualization. The merger builds on an existing partnership between the two companies where they share more than 350 joint customers. The acquisition is expected to close later in the year.
Salesforce Buys Tableau Software for More Than $15 Billion (June)
The merger will enable Salesforce to bring its Einstein Analytics and Tableau Platform together and offer customers a full-featured BI portfolio for a wide variety of use cases. It will also allow Salesforce to reach a broader set of users. More than 86,000 global organizations use Tableau to analyze and visualize their data. As part of Salesforce, Tableau will continue to operate independently under its own brand. Tableau will also remain headquartered in Seattle, Washington and be led by its CEO Adam Selipsky.
Logi Analytics Acquires Zoomdata in Second Major Buy of the Year (June)
The merger will enable Logi to expand its portfolio of analytic capabilities, as well as enhance its global partner network. In a post on the Logi blog, the company’s CEO Steven Schneider lumps the two acquisitions together as a broader new growth stage for the company. While Logi will offer the new Zoomdata capabilities to its existing customers, it appears as though the Zoomdata platform will continue to get regular product updates and enhancements. This means existing Zoomdata users should be able to continue on using the product for the foreseeable future.