DELTEK buys INPUT for $60 mm

It's official- Deltek bought Input.

http://washingtontechnology.com/articles/2010/09/30/deltek-buys-input.aspx?s=wtdaily_300910

What does this mean?

The core business of Deltek is/was accounting and program management software, in which they remain a leader. But the field is much more crowded, and Microsoft has become very popular there.

So, being well-established in the government market, Deltek looked for growth in related areas.

Last year Deltek bought MY SBX which became GovWin. This is one of several acquisitions over the past 4-5 years.

With the purchase of Input, Deltek immediately becomes the leader in contract opportunity tracking.

While there are other players, notably Fed Sources, Onvia and some others, Deltek/Input is the biggest.

But in thw wings, trying to get a handle on the market, is Bloomberg and BGov...

I will have more on this soon, but in the meantime, the issue that many were thinking about... will Deltek host the annual holiday party???

INPUT sale, day 5, take 4

So, here's what I've heard since yesterday!!

- that Deltek was a very potential buyer (bet on this horse);

- that 3 companies were in the final bidding and there might be a deal to slice INPUT into pieces among the 3 (very strange, but I guess it's possible)- much less likely scenario;

- that it could be Fed Sources (sorry, but where would they get the money?) out of the question :

- that it is a private equity firm (makes the most sense)- made more sense yesterday;

- that a very senior person has left (only one source on this one);
<>this is true

Deltek....hmmmm...

INPUT sale(?)- day 4, take 3

So, here's what I've heard since Saturday:

- that Deltek was a potential buyer;

- that 3 companies were in the final bidding and there might be a deal to slice INPUT into pieces among the 3 (very strange, but I guess it's possible);

- that it could be Fed Sources (sorry, but where would they get the money?):

- that it is a private equity firm (makes the most sense);

- that a very senior person has left (only one source on this one);

- several people jumped in to tell me that INPUT has been "on the block" for several years (only partly accurate);

- that the likelihood of it being BGov is low (this from several reliable sources).

Please keep in mind that I am not getting anything from inside INPUT and I am not aware that I know anyone inside BGov. Even though I am connected to over 2,500 people in the government market on LinkedIn, I have no Bloomberg/BGov contacts.

SO, my post Saturday was probably off the mark in who the buyer was- if there was a sale.

I predicated my assumption/guess on several things I heard last week, most of which I cannot mention here. Suffice it to say, there was something going down Thursday and Friday that involved INPUT. Whether or not it resulted in a sale, well, we'll all find out about the same time. Maybe here.

Which leads me to conclude that I may be wrong about BGov/Bloomberg (expert witnesses are against me here), and that the final deal may still be in the works.

If that's the case, I was wrong on both fronts (buyer and sale) - but boy, it was fun thinking something had occurred!

But stay tuned- I will be watching INPUT, FSI and Bloomberg closely.... and news is coming very soon...

Isolated incident or shape of things to come? Applications for Schedule 75 (Office supplies contract) suspended…

Schedule 75 new applicants suspended – A GSA Sponsored BPA awarded to less than 5% of Schedule 75 vendors- here’s a link to the story:

http://www.federalnewsradio.com/?sid=2060341&nid=35&_hw=GSA

GSA is looking for ways to leverage its buying power, apparently without considering ramifications for companies that have spend time and money getting Schedules. The award itself (to me) appears flawed, in that planned “levels” of discounts will not be supported by all of the BPA awardees.

Will this experiment be extended to other product categories? My guess is that it will, and probably not far down the road.

Please share your thoughts.

This and other topics will be addressed at the 7th Annual Summit on Selling Products to the Government –

http://www.federaldirect.net/sellingtothegovernment.html

Input- Take Two!

While I always appreciate being in Bisnow, I never said BGov was the buyer- I said that's what I heard.

I have also heard that government accounting software firm Deltek was the buyer. And several people saying it is a private equity firm.

There have been several other rumors regarding key people leaving Input- all unverified.

If I had one major guess, it would be that I believe the company has been sold, but we are all waiting to see who the buyer is.

Word on the street- INPUT has been sold

There has been lots of speculation the last few months about Input actively seeking a buyer, but the current word on the street is that they have been sold.

Further, the unverified word is the buyer in Bloomberg/BGov. I have heard this from mulltiple sources near both parties, but nothing fom inside either.

If that is accurate, there will be a significant shift in the contract information landscape over the next several months.

Stay tuned!