1、Patent landscape StudyAcquisitionTABLE OF CONTENTSIntroductionandCriteria.2TheLargestAcquisitionOfTechnologyIndustrySalesforceAcquisitionByIBMSalesforceAcquisitionByOracle.3.4.5.7.11PredictingTheSalesforceAcquisitionThroughPatentAnalysisComparisonOfTopTechnologiesOfSalesforceWithGoogle,Microsoft,SAP

2、AndOracle.19.20TopInventorsInSalesforce,Google,SAP,MicrosoftAndOracleConclusionSalesforceAcquisitionByMicrosoft.5InTheRunForSalesforceAcquisition.32A CROSS COMPANY PATENT ANALYSIS ONSALESFORCE ACQUISITIONThe IT industry is known for its fair share of mergers andacquisitions.From acquiring nascent st

3、art-ups with a smallrevenue stream to those with a huge potential,the technologyindustry has seen it all.Be it WhatsApps$18 Bn acquisition orNest for$3.2 Bn,the industry does only little not to surprise us.Running up to an acquisition demands ascertaining available cashflow;culture fit and market se

4、ntiments,among others.Mostimportantly,however,the strategic fit in technology should makesense.Salesforce has been in the limelight recently since it hiredfinancial advisors,possibly to discuss an acquisition.We thought itsa good idea to use the patent data to analyze the possiblecontenders and see

5、if we can predict who has maximum likelihoodto acquire/partner with Salesforce.At present,it is unclear as for which company among the topcontenders this acquisition will make a strategic fit.It is alsounclear which company among the possible bidders will actuallymove forward to acquire Salesforce,e

6、ven if an acquisition were tohappen.However,given the patent portfolio and technologicaloverlaps,for some companies it makes more sense than forothers.The top ones in line are:Oracle,IBM,SAP,Microsoft,HPEnterprise and Google.3IN THE RUN FOR SALESFORCE ACQUISITIONWhile we see that the acquisition cou