Wednesday 12 November 2008

SAP looks at possible acquisitions in India

In 2006, the software maker said it would invest $1 billion in India by 2010, and increase its staff to 7,000

German software maker SAP AG said it is looking at possible acquisitions in India — its fastest growing market — while conceding that the local market had felt some impact of the global economic slowdown.

SAP, the world’s largest maker of business software by revenue, sold 46% more software licenses to firms in India in the third quarter ended September, from a year earlier. While it does not provide a country-specific revenue breakup, the company said in October 2007 that its India revenue would grow to $1 billion in five years, as local companies increase technology spending to match business growth. It has at least 3,500 customers in India.

SAP will look “at opportunity for acquisition, for inorganic growth (but) integration is important,” company director Peter Zencke said. SAP acquired YASU Technologies, a Hyderabad-based business intelligence software firm, for an undisclosed sum in October 2007. The integration is proceeding smoothly, the company said.

Last month, SAP cut its forecast for the quarter to December on lower-than-anticipated revenue amid slowing demand for its business software because of the global economic turmoil. “We don’t know the impact yet,” said Zencke. “Globally, all governments and international institutions have to address the problem. There is a global recession.”

“The slowdown has also hit India,” SAP India president and chief executive officer Ranjan Das said, but declined to comment on whether SAP would maintain growth in the current quarter.

SAP employs 5,297 people in India including 4,069 professionals at its research and development centre here, the second largest after one in Germany. In 2006, the software maker said it would invest $1 billion in India by 2010, and increase its staff to 7,000. “We are not scaling down our staff. There are no plans for that, (in fact) we are likely to scale it up,” said Zencke.

Source: Livemint

Posted by Harsh at 12:15

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