IBM is to acquire Dublin-based analytics software provider The Now Factory.
Financial terms were not disclosed.
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The Now Factory's customers are communications service providers (CSPs) who use the software in a bid to better understand how a subscriber interacts with cloud-based services, including mobile apps.
IBM claims that a CSP can use The Now Factory's software to analyse customer usage of 3G and 4G LTE data services, for example, and detect high volume pre-paid subscribers. The CSP can then use this data in a targeted campaign to convert pre-paid subscribers into contract customers.
The firm said that CSPs are looking at analytics software as the growth in the volume of real-time data that is being produced by mobile devices means that there is a need to collect and process events instantly, and understand the impact of customer interaction.
Bob Picciano, general manager of information management at IBM software group, said: "The Now Factory's software enhances IBM's big data and analytics portfolio by improving the speed, development and implementation of big data solutions, and gives communications service providers the ability to better service their customers."
IBM said that the acquisition fits into its long-term big data and analytics strategy, in which it expects to reach $20bn (£12.4bn) in revenue by 2015.
The acquisition is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2013, and thereafter The Now Factory will become part of IBM's software group.
