Rob Ashe, Cognos CEO

Cognos is expanding its strategic alliance with IBM to offer joint development, marketing and sales of services-oriented architecture based software.

As part of the agreement, IBM will increase its Cognos consultant capabilities and Cognos will further enhance and optimize its business intelligence products for IBM hardware, software, and services.

SOA is a modern Web services architecture based on open industry standards that provides customers with flexibility and choice in hardware and software. IDC predicts the market opportunity for SOA – including software, services, and hardware – will reach US$21 billion by 2007.

The expanded strategic alliance tightens the integration between Cognos and IBM across all areas, including software, hardware, services, marketing, and joint product development.

"Both companies share a vision for providing cost effective, integrated business solutions for enterprise companies. With this alliance, our organizations will be more tightly aligned and in an optimal position to help our customers succeed with their BI and performance management initiatives," says Cognos president and CEO Rob Ashe.

"Combining Cognos' industry-leading applications with IBM's open technology and services expertise will help organizations increase efficiencies and gain a faster return on their investment," says Mark Hanny, vice-president of strategic alliances at IBM.

Cognos and IBM will develop and market new offerings targeted at a range of industries. The initial focus will be on the insurance industry and the public sector, but the companies also see opportunities in banking and financial services and manufacturing, says Rupert Bonham-Carter, senior director of IBM Alliance at Cognos.

The agreement vaults Cognos into the top tier of IBM partners and provides unique access to high-level IBM customers.

"There's no better partner than IBM" when pursuing large business customers, says Mr. Bonham-Carter.