The company has proposed a AU$1.6 billion takeover of Sausage Software. And in a separate deal the company is buying AU$237 million worth of Telstra e-business assets. The resulting company will be worth AU$3.5 billion.
Talking about the acquisition of Sausage, Chris Tyler, managing director and CEO of Solution 6, said "Sausage's solutions and products will fill the gap and round out our application capability to customers."
Wayne Bos, CEO of Sausage Software will join Solution 6 as a director, and another place on Solution 6's board will be offered to Sausage. The Sausage branding will probably continue Tyler said. "We see it as a merger of equals," he said.
Tyler said Sausage's global distribution channels and SME access will give Solution 6 customers for their e-Business platform, while Sausage's e-commerce and ERP solutions will be able to be marketed to SME's through Solution 6's accountancy firm clients.
"It is an extremely elegant fit," Tyler said.
Tyler said the acquisition "puts us in a very competitive position in the global theatre. Only two or three company's on the globe deliver these capabilities," he said.
As a result of the acquisitions Tyler said the company will be driving into business-to-business solutions very competitively.
Bos said there was "lots of synergy and strength in the deal." He said Sausage was also looking at it "as a global opportunity to capitalise their own reach."
"In this case, one plus one is substantially more than two," Tyler said.
The merger follows Solution 6's proposed acquisition of several key assets of Telstra. Telstra's electronic procurement solution, eConnect and its electronic messaging, investment administration and reporting platform TFMS (Telstra Financial Management System). Both developed by Telstra.
Solution 6 will also gain global rights to Telstra's financial management services and a 30 percent share in PlesTel, Telstra's joint venture with Plessey Asia Pacific.
Ted Pretty, group managing director of Telstra Convergent Business will join the Solution 6 board as chairman.
Pretty said the organisation had matured its products to a point where they needed to move to global distribution. Bringing the product to Solution 6, gave them the opportunity to bring these products to market.
Telstra currently owns 10 percent of Sausage and 24 percent of Solution 6. Under the agreement, Telstra will increase its equity stake in Solution 6 to 40 percent.
