European Commission approves SAP's Sybase buy

The European Commission (EC) has given the green light to SAP's US$5.8 billion acquisition of US firm Sybase.

The EC had been investigating the move, as both companies provide database, middleware and enterprise application software, but has concluded that the deal will not affect the European Economic Area.

In particular, the EC is satisfied that the new entity will not control a " must have" product with no alternative vendor in the market.

SAP confirmed that it had obtained approval from the EC, and added that the terms of the acquisition would remain as outlined on 26 May, when it amended its offer with a new expiry date of 26 July as it waited for the EC's decision.

Jim Hagemann Snabe, co-chief executive of SAP, said at the announcement of the deal in May that it would allow the company to provide a range of mobile services.

"Mobile devices are becoming the preferred interaction point with business applications, whether the user is a factory supervisor, a retail manager or an entrepreneur in a developing nation," he said.

"The combination of SAP and Sybase will give users the option of running operations from leading mobile devices, and will unleash the full power of mobility, including messaging interoperability, content delivery and mobile commerce services."