Hoping to catch up with Google and Yahoo! in the search and online advertising game, Microsoft has announced its plan to acquire Fast Search & Transfer ASA, a leading provider of enterprise search solutions, for 6.6 billion NOK or $1.2 billion.

Moreover, this acquisition will bolster Microsoft’s research and development presence in the European market.

“Enterprise search is becoming an indispensable tool to businesses of all sizes, helping people find, use and share critical business information quickly,” said Jeff Raikes, president of the Microsoft Business Division. “Until now organizations have been forced to choose between powerful, high-end search technologies or more mainstream, infrastructure solutions. The combination of Microsoft and FAST gives customers a new choice: a single vendor with solutions that span the full range of customer needs.”

For Fast Search this acquisition means faster growth given Microsoft’s strong sales and marketing platform.

“By joining Microsoft, we can benefit from the momentum behind the SharePoint business productivity platform to really empower a broader set of users through Microsoft’s strong sales and marketing network. It validates FAST’s momentum and leadership in enterprise search,” said John Lervik, CEO of FAST.

Since the board of directors of this Norwegian company unanimously supported this offer, this acquisition is expected to go smoothly and quickly.

Via Market Watch

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