Accenture Acquires Yesler, Bolstering its B2B Marketing Services
Seattle – 2nd April 2020 – Accenture has acquired Yesler, a business-to-business (B2B) marketing services agency that helps many of the world’s leading brands run their global marketing programs and operations at speed and scale. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The acquisition continues to strengthen and scale Accenture’s B2B marketing services, adding depth in offerings such as account-based marketing, customer advocacy, sales enablement and marketing automation. With more than 400 people globally, Yesler is headquartered in Seattle and has additional offices in Portland, Philadelphia, London, Toronto and Singapore. “Yesler’s expertise in B2B has given them a unique understanding of how businesses make purchase decisions — insights that empower marketers to influence purchasing decisions at critical stages, enabling them to achieve growth and adapt their operating models for continued success,” said Manish Sharma, Group Chief Executive for Accenture Operations. “We’re excited to have them join the Accenture team.”
https://newsroom.accenture.com/news/accenture-acquires-yesler-bolstering-its-b2b-marketing-services.htm

Accenture Completes Acquisition of ESR Labs, to Help Automotive Companies Drive Greater Value from Software
New York & Munich – 1st April 2020 - Accenture has completed the acquisition of Munich-based ESR Labs, a company that develops embedded software for leading German car brands and suppliers. ESR Labs is joining Accenture Industry X.0, the part of Accenture that uses digital technologies to improve how companies design, engineer and manufacture products and services, and operate industrial facilities. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The acquisition expands Accenture’s capabilities to help its automotive clients drive greater value from software. ESR Labs will team with two other German acquisitions for Industry X.0, strategic design consultancy designaffairs and technology consultancy Zielpuls, to develop mobility services for carmakers as well as smart connected solutions for medical technology, industrial equipment and high-tech companies. ESR Labs is the latest acquisition that Accenture has made to strengthen Industry X.0. In February, it bought VanBerlo, a Dutch product design and innovation agency. In 2019, it acquired US product innovation and engineering company Nytec and UK innovation firm Happen. In 2018, it bought US embedded software specialist Pillar Technology and US hardware engineering firm Mindtribe.
https://newsroom.accenture.com/news/accenture-completes-acquisition-of-esr-labs-to-help-automotive-companies-drive-greater-value-from-software.htm

Apple Acquires Popular Weather App Dark Sky
New York - 31st March 2020 - Apple has announced it has acquired popular weather app, Dark Sky, for an undisclosed amount. Dark Sky launched eight years ago and has been the recipient of Apple Editor’s Choice awards as well as being praised for its design and alerts that warn when it’s going to rain. In a blog announcing the acquisition, co-founder, Adam Grossman, said: “Our goal has always been to provide the world with the best weather information possible, to help as many people as we can stay dry and safe, and to do so in a way that respects your privacy. There is no better place to accomplish these goals than at Apple. We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to reach far more people, with far more impact, than we ever could alone.”
https://blog.darksky.net/

Palo Alto Networks to Acquire CloudGenix for $420 Million
Santa Clara, California – 31st March 2020 - Palo Alto Networks, the global cybersecurity leader, has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire CloudGenix, Inc., a cloud-delivered SD-WAN provider. As applications continue to move from corporate data centers to the cloud and SaaS, and users require secure access to applications from anywhere in the world, organizations are struggling to manage access for the distributed workforce. Current remote access solutions for the branch and retail offices are complex, costly and often insecure. To support the modern workforce, organizations need access to all applications from all locations, delivered via a global network as a service for accelerated access, and with integrated world-class security from the cloud. This is what the industry calls “secure access service edge,” or SASE. Nikesh Arora, chairman and CEO, Palo Alto Networks, commented: "As the enterprise becomes more distributed, customers want agile solutions that just work, and that applies to both security and networking. Upon the close of the transaction, the combined platform will provide customers with a complete SASE offering that is best-in-class, easy to deploy, cloud-managed, and delivered as a service."
https://www.paloaltonetworks.com/company/press/2020/palo-alto-networks-announces-intent-to-acquire-cloudgenix-to-extend-the-industry-s-most-comprehensive-secure-access-service-edge-sase-platform

Niantic Acquires Augmented Reality Start Up 6D.ai
31st March 2020 - Niantic has acquired 6D.ai, an augmented reality company that is building a 3D map of the world using only smartphone cameras. In a blog post, CEO John Hanke, said that the dynamic 3D map of the world could enable new kinds of planet-scale AR experiences. He added, “This means we’re even closer to an AR platform that will unlock the ability for any developer to make content for current and future AR hardware. This bold pursuit requires significant advancements in AR technology that can only be made possible with an accurate and constantly updated 3D map of the real world. Now, we’ll be able to leverage 6D.ai’s deep expertise and significant breakthroughs in AR research and engineering to further our ongoing work in support of our mission.”
https://nianticlabs.com/blog/

MRI Software Broadens Capabilities with Acquisition of Orchard Information Systems
London – 31st March 2020 – Global, real estate software solutions organisation, MRI Software, has announced the acquisition of Orchard Information Systems, a specialist provider of software solutions for the UK social housing sector. The acquisition adds to MRI’s offering for the UK residential market and provides innovation and scale to extend the reach of Orchard’s solutions to better serve the growing social housing sector. Chief Executive Officer of MRI Software, Patrick Ghilani, said: “We are excited to welcome Orchard into the MRI family. By uniting Orchard’s expertise in social housing with MRI’s solutions for managing residential, build-to-rent, leasehold block management and mixed-use properties, we are now extremely well equipped to address the varying needs and evolving business models of the UK residential market with a comprehensive and flexible product portfolio. Together, MRI and Orchard provide important tools for our clients to positively impact their communities and support the increased need for social housing in the UK.”
https://www.mrisoftware.com/uk/news/mri-software-acquires-orchard-information-systems/

IGenero Acquired by PrimeSoft
Hyderabad - 28th March 2020 – Developer of mobile and web-based applications, iGenero, has announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by PrimeSoft. US and Bengaluru-based IT company PrimeSoft, also announced that it has acquired Hyderabad company and that iGenero’s entire team have joined PrimeSoft. The acquisition will mean PrimeSoft can enhance its tech capabilities. Meanwhile, iGenero will be able to leverage the resources and capabilities of PrimeSoft to scale its offerings and help its clients with new digital products and services. iGenero said in a statement, “Our collective goal is to provide a comprehensive network of integrated services that will better serve our customer’s needs.” Founded in 2006, PrimeSoft is a provider of software solutions, tools and products to its clients in the US and Canada and offers services like product development, cloud infrastructure, platform-as-a-service, infrastructure-as-a-service and product testing.

https://www.igenero.com/2020/03/28/igenero-acquisition-primesoft/

Xerox Acquires Altodigital and ITEC Connect, Expanding SMB Reach in Europe
Uxbridge, UK – 25th March 2020 – Xerox has acquired two services and technology providers, Altodigital and ITEC Connect, in the UK. Xavier Heiss, EVP and president of EMEA Operations, Xerox, said: “We’re supporting small and midsize businesses seeking a modern work experience through two acquisitions in the UK. Altodigital and ITEC are both leaders in managed print services and specialists in IT services, an area into which Xerox is rapidly expanding with new offerings.” Both acquisitions have received government approval. Terms of the transactions were not disclosed. This is the third acquisition targeting the fast-growing SMB market this year. In January, Xerox announced the purchase of Arena Group, which provides office technology, software, solutions and services. “Altodigital is joining Xerox on its incredible journey as it undergoes a digital-first transformation and invests in customer-focused innovation,” said James Abrahart, CEO and owner, Altodigital. “We share Xerox’s vision to broaden the range of services and technologies available to SMBs requiring a modern work experience.”
https://news.xerox.co.uk/news/xerox-acquires-altodigital-and-itec-connect-expanding-smb-reach-in-europe

SS&C Acquires Captricity
Windsor, CT - 24th March 2020 - SS&C Technologies Holdings, Inc. has announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Captricity, the maker of Vidado data transformation platform. The Oakland, California-based Captricity offers an enterprise-grade machine learning solution that enables fast, scalable and highly accurate extraction of handwritten and machine-printed data from paper documents. The acquisition adds 30 full-time employees in Oakland, Boulder, Colorado, and New York City. “The financial and healthcare industries are challenged by the abundance of manual paper-based transactions, often including significant amounts of handwritten data,” said Bill Stone, Chairman and CEO. “The addition of Vidado and Captricity’s team will complement SS&C’s business process outsourcing (BPO) services and our AWD business process management solution.  We look forward to working with Vidado’s talented team to continue to deliver intelligent solutions.”
https://www.ssctech.com/about-us/news-events/press-releases/press-release/n/1152

Tech Helping Hands or “Digital Dunkirk”

Amazon Web Services (AWS) Commits $20 Million to Diagnostic Development Initiative (DDI)
https://aws.amazon.com/government-education/nonprofits/disaster-response/diagnostic-dev-initiative/?tag=zdnet-vig-20

Cognizant Philanthropies Commit $10 Million to Support Communities Worldwide Impacted by COVID-19
https://news.cognizant.com/2020-04-01-Cognizant-Philanthropies-Commit-10-Million-to-Support-Communities-Worldwide-Impacted-by-COVID-19

Everbridge Critical Event Management tailored for COVID-19
https://searchdisasterrecovery.techtarget.com/news/252480606/Everbridge-Critical-Event-Management-tailored-for-COVID-19

COVID-19: $800+ million to support small businesses and crisis response
https://www.blog.google/inside-google/company-announcements/commitment-support-small-businesses-and-crisis-response-covid-19/

Infosys Foundation Partners With Narayana Health City To Open 100-Bed Quarantine Facility for COVID-19 Patients
https://www.infosys.com/newsroom/press-releases/2020/open-100-bed-quarantine-facility-covid-19-patients.html

Wipro, Azim Premji Foundation commit Rs 1125 crore to tackle COVID-19 Crisis https://www.wipro.com/newsroom/press-releases/2020/wipro-azim-premji-foundation-commit-rs-1125-crore-to-tackle-covid-19-crisis/