After announcing the completion of its acquisition of Cognos, IBM will give further details of the business strategy it plans for the firm on Wednesday this week.

The acquisition of the Canadian business intelligence vendor is IBM’s biggest ever, and will allow IBM to compete in the business analysis and performance management software market.

IBM argued that the new acquisition will accelerate its Information On Demand strategy: an initiative which the firm says combines its "strength in information integration, content and data management and business consulting services to unlock the business value of information”.

The small amount of crossover in products could also accelerate integration efforts between the two companies, and analysts argued that the move will widen the gap between the incumbent software giants and the rest.

However, a new drive by specialist provider Information Builders will allow the firm to expand its business intelligence (BI) solutions into new markets in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

A partner programme will allow resellers to integrate with Information Builder’s BI software, and gain access to its education, technical, marketing and sales resources.