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Buying technology

Since a New Technological Corporation exists as a result of technological leverage, the most obvious thing for it to buy is more technology. Buying technology through acquisitions means looking for products in their development or early marketing phases which can be acquired, complete with the Wild Talents who developed them, and incorporated into the company's product line. Since acquisitions at this stage in a product's history tend to be relatively inexpensive, the decisions involved in making such an acquisition tend to focus on how well the product and people fit with the acquiring company, evaluation of the quality and potential of the product, and a buy versus make calculation of the fairness of the price.

If technology and products can be purchased at a price comparable to in-house development or the price premium paid for them is justified by time saved in getting to market, such acquisitions clearly make sense. Most acquisition activities will fall into this category, but since the absolute sums involved are modest, these transactions will have little impact on the overall financial structure of the company.


Editor: John Walker