DealZone

As tech spending stages a comeback, watch for industry giants like Hewlett-Packard and IBM to start scouring the security software market for acquisitions that will boost their share of corporate IT budgets, Anupreeta Das reports. Security software is a critical component of the “stack” of applications used by companies to store and manage networks and data, making software makers from McAfee to upstart Sourcefire attractive targets.

“There is a clear trend toward convergence of technologies in the data center, and security is front and center,” said Daniel Ives, an analyst at FBR Capital Markets. He and other analysts said security spending by companies held up well during the recession even as overall IT budgets shrank — a mark of resilience that only adds to the lure of security companies. “Security really has the attention of CIOs (chief information officers),” Ives said in an interview. Read more, click here.