IBM, Documentum Buy e-Records Firms

IBM bought privately-held Tarian; Documentum countered with plans to acquire TrueArc.

IBM and Documentum Inc. both made moves to extend their content management products by making acquisitions in the electronic records management space Monday.

IBM bought privately-held Tarian Software, of Ottawa. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. Documentum countered with plans to acquire TrueArc Corp., also based in Ottawa, for $3.6 million in cash.

Electronic records management has come to the fore in recent months with Wall Street financial scandals placing a greater emphasis on proper management of financial records and disclosure. Regulatory and legal requirements make records management especially key in the insurance, finance and government sectors, according to IBM officials, in Armonk, N.Y.

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IBM will add Tarians technology to its Data Management Software Group, specifically its Enterprise Content Management portfolio. It will integrate the technology with IBM Content Manager, DB2 and Lotus software products.

"With the addition of Tarians technology and expertise in e-Records management, IBM is bringing more value to customers faster in managing digitized content," said Janet Perna, general manager of IBMs Data Management Software Group, in a statement.

Documentum, meanwhile, already has an integration partnership with TrueArc to package TrueArcs Foremost Enterprise and the Documentum ECM platform that TrueArc currently sells.

After the acquisition closes later this quarter, Documentum will deliver a new version of an integrated offering, updated with the latest releases of both products and certified compliant with the U.S. Department of Defense 5015.2 records management standard, which company officials said has become the de facto records management standard in the United States and is becoming accepted worldwide.

"Customers, prospects and partners across all industries need records management, because they must comply with some type of regulation or industry standard and implement end of life policies for their content," said Dave DeWalt, president and chief executive officer of Documentum, in a statement. "Records management is not an option; it is a critical requirement in todays business climate."

DeWalt said the acquisition would particularly allow Documentum to expand its presence in the government sector.

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