Software AG buys developer

Software AG has purchased Israeli software company Sabratec Ltd. for $11 million to expand its legacy modernization capabilities, the company said today.

Software AG of Darmstadt, Germany, paid $7 million in cash and will pay an additional $4 million to investors through 2008. The purchase gives Software AG ApplinX, a solution developed by Sabratec. The software helps organizations integrate their legacy systems with service-oriented architectures. The deal includes Sabratec's sales and marketing unit in the United States.

"Our customers have clearly indicated that the long-term value of their legacy systems resides in the ability to quickly and easily integrate these systems with service-oriented architectures via Web services," said Joe Gentry, vice president of Enterprise Transaction Systems at Software AG. "With the addition of ApplinX, [our] legacy modernization strategy will fully address this critical enterprise requirement by encompassing all major legacy system platforms."

Software AG will retain all Sabratec's development and support staff in Israel and set up a Software AG affiliate in that country.

Software AG provides data management and integration solutions to commercial, federal, and state and local customers. Among its clients are the Navy, the states of Alaska and North Dakota, Montgomery County, Md., Sacramento County, Calif., and the New York City Department of Buildings. The company has approximately 2,500 employees and posted 2003 revenue of $530 million, according to Hoover's Online.