Global vendor strategies - 16/09/06

Business Object bought software editor Armstrong Laing (UK) for €44m, but could be a likely pray for IBM or Oracle.

IBM is entering the automotive market. It has signed a contract with Magna Electronics to jointly develop electronics and software for the automotive market.

Microsoft has unveiled its digital music player, Zune, to compete with Apple' s iPod.

Ericsson could be subject to a takeover bid by  Private Equity firms, unveiled a reorganization of its corporate structure, and hire about 500 engineers. It will reorganize the company into three key units from Jan. 1, 2007 - networks, global services and multimedia.

Freescale Semiconductor will be acquired by a group of private-equity firms for $17.6bn.