Best Software to Acquire ACCPAC

Best Software announced today that its parent company, Sage, has reached an agreement with Computer Associates to purchase its ACCPAC subsidiary for $110 million. "When we were putting this deal together we were surprised at just how complementary it was for two companies working in a similar space," says Ron Verni, CEO of Best Software. "With both products and geographical scope, there is little overlap, which will really allow us to leverage new regions and products." Verni says this acquisition brings a number of strategic benefits worldwide. The addition of ACCPAC will strengthen Sage's business in Australia and South Africa, complementing Sage's existing operations, and will provide an entry into Asia with a strong position in Singapore. ACCPAC also strengthens the company's overall North American position, especially in Canada, Verni says. In addition ACCPAC Online, which offers hosted accounting, CRM, and other business applications, provides an attractive alternative to Sage's desktop solutions. "We are very excited about adding an ASP CRM solution to our product family," Verni says. "We have seen the success of Salesforce.com, and it's great that we also have a channel in place that knows the model." Verni adds that ACCPAC's technology-agnostic, open-source platform will also be an advantage in the company's future integration efforts. The deal is still subject to regulatory approval, but Verni says that following the merger the ACCPAC brand will remain intact indefinitely. "The ACCPAC brand is very strong, and we have no plans to change that--but, we will cobrand ACCPAC products with the Best logo to let customers know they can get the same Best quality products and service within a larger family," he says, adding that ACCPAC's employee base will also be retained. David Hood, president and CEO of ACCPAC, says that the merger will not affect the company's huge reseller partner base. Rather, it gives channel partners even more opportunities and features with which to work. "The opportunities to leverage both products are many and varied," he says. Best has made 15 acquisitions since 1998 in the North American market worth more than $1.4 billion.