The move will bolster iWay’s 250-strong adapter portfolio by adding development, support, and sales capabilities. Adapters are pre-defined software components that allow for easy integration and data interchange between different databases and business applications.

Actional is a privately held Web service management company based in Mountain View, California. iWay’s acquisition will focus on Actional’s suite of adapter technologies – SOAPswitch (its best known and most widely used product), Control Broker, Object Bridge, and associated high-speed transaction adapters – including patents and trademark rights. iWay will also pick Actional’s 20-plus ISV, VAR, and distributor relationships.

New York-based Information Builders stressed that iWay would assume all liabilities for future maintenance of Actional’s products. Also, that Actional’s North American development and support staff material to the adapter business (mainly located in Montreal, Canada) and its European sales and support staff based on SAG AG’s campus in Waldorf, Germany would be put onto iWay’s payroll.

Actional’s Montreal office will become the foundation for a new iWay development facility, and the focal point for driving iWay’s partnership with Microsoft Corp [MSFT], with Microsoft customers benefiting from the combined investment both companies have put in adapters for its BizTalk Server solution.

The additional manufacturing resources are expected to deliver new tailored products specifically for Microsoft’s .NET and BizTalk technologies.

Since 50% of Actional’s adapter customers are in Europe, the importance of a local presence in the region cannot be stressed enough.

iWay is making strides to position itself strongly in the adapter software market, which is ripe for consolidation, since it represents a small segment relative to the overall data integration market and cannot sustain growth for too many niche vendors. Therefore 2003 and 2004 will be defining years for the market as vendors jostle to build up market share. Many are expected to go down the acquisition route or grow their indirect channels via reseller and OEMs.

iWay officials expect the transaction to be completed in the next ten days. Actional will remain an operating company focused exclusively on Web services management.

This article was based on material originally published by ComputerWire.