SAP acquires Maxware, Wicom Communications

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SAP acquires Maxware, Wicom Communications

SAP today acquired two European software companies to help fill in its contact center functionality and enhance SOA security.

Espoo, Finland-based Wicom Communications is the maker of IP-based contact-center software currently used by about 200 companies. The product is offered via a hosted, traditional on-site or hybrid licensing model and already integrates with SAP CRM and SAP Interaction Center, the company's contact center software.

Maxware is based in Trondheim, Norway, and counts over 300 customers for its identity management software. Maxware's software, which is service-oriented architecture (SOA)-based and offered as a service, provides "scalable, real-time and standards-based access to identity information residing in multiple repositories," according to an SAP statement.

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While both companies offer their products via a hosted model or Software as a Service, it is not clear how this factored in to the acquisitions. In early 2008, SAP will reportedly offer its small and midsized business product, dubbed "A1S," as a service.

Today's news comes on the heels of SAP's move last week to acquire performance management vendor OutlookSoft. Paul Hamerman, vice president of enterprise applications with Cambridge, Mass.-based Forrester Research Inc., pegs the value of each company at under $10 million.

Both of these companies will provide technical capabilities to bolster SAP's middleware stack and fit into the NetWeaver platform, according to Hamerman, fitting in with SAP's "tuck-in" acquisition strategy.

"In the scheme of things, these acquisitions are both much smaller and less significant than the OutlookSoft acquisition," Hamerman said. "SAP is attempting to keep up with Oracle and clearly wants to compete in the middleware space."