Cognos shareholders OK deal with IBM

By Lisa Kerner

Charlotte, N.C., Charlotte, N.C., Jan. 14 - Cognos Inc. shareholders approved the company's $58.00-per-share acquisition by an indirect subsidiary of International Business Machines Corp.

The arrangement was approved by some 99.8% of the votes cast by Cognos shareholders either present or by proxy at a special meeting held on Jan. 14.

Final approval by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice is expected to be sought on Jan. 16, with the deal expected to close during the first quarter.

The merger has already been granted early termination of the Hart-Scott-Rodino waiting period by the Federal Trade Commission.

IBM agreed to acquire Cognos in an all-cash transaction valued at $4.9 billion as part of its Information on Demand strategy.

In September, Cognos announced it would acquire Applix, Inc. for $17.87 per share, or about $339 million. At the time, that transaction was expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2007. Applix is a business analytics software solutions company based in Westborough, Mass.

Cognos is a business intelligence and performance management software solutions company located in Ottawa.

IBM, based in Armonk, N.Y., develops computer systems, software, storage systems and microelectronics.

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