IBM’s appetite for investment in small software and computer services companies is as keen as ever, and its latest target is Early, Cloud & Co, which offers teleservicing software and services from its base in Newport, Rhode Island. IBM will subscribe for newly issued voting convertible preferred stock, but terms were not disclosed. The two also signed marketing and development agreements on meeting the teleservicing needs of banks, brokers, insurance and distribution firms. Early, Cloud will become an IBM Business Partner – Industry Application Specialist and Co-operative Software Program. Teleservicing systems use voice and data processing to provide users with quick access to information needed to conduct business over the telephone – answering account queries over the telephone for a bank, for example, and telemarketing.
