M&A Consolidation Continues to Alter the Tech Landscape

Software transactions accounted for nearly half the deal value of mergers and acquisitions in the U.S. tech sector in the third quarter of 2013, according to a new report from PwC. The IT services and hardware sectors also saw some major deals as well as some major transactions related to cloud technology. For channel companies, this means both opportunities and risks, according to Rob Fisher, PwC's U.S. technology industry deals leader. Consolidation across the entire ecosystem—hardware, software and services—has dramatically upset relationships in the past decade and led to increased competition, business disruption, the need to invest in new service capabilities and pricing pressure, said Fisher. As larger tech companies acquire new capabilities, products, and services, new sales opportunities arise for channel partners, but they will likely have to invest in managed services or value-added services around the new products. Channel Insider takes a look at highlights from the PwC report.