Technology increasingly impacts businesses in every possible way, from supply chains to customer engagement. Technological advances such as artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things are causing ‘digital disruption’ and companies are asking themselves how they can position themselves in this unsettling environment. Frequently, acquisitions of tech-driven, and especially digital, business models have become the instrument of choice to acquire needed technologies, capabilities, and products and to close innovation gaps.

According to BCG, high-tech deals represented almost 30% of the total $2.5 trillion of completed M&A transactions in 2016.

Write an individual report on this technology-driven transformation. Address the following issues in your paper:

1) Identify and critically analyse the underlying currents of this wave of technology-driven mergers and acquisitions. Concentrate on both strategic and operational synergies.

2) Choose one specific technology-driven deal in the last 5 years and critically evaluate the motivations behind the purchase and explore how the target’s focus fits into the acquirer’s business model.

3) Perform a critical analysis of the deal you chose from the financial point of view. Explore the value of the deal and whether it can be judged as justified (use discounted value analysis and comparable transaction analysis in your reasoning). Explore the stock prices prior to and after the acquisition and analyse these moves critically.