SAP buying Sybase for $5.8B in attack on Oracle, move into mobile phones

SAP buying Sybase for $5.8B

SAN FRANCISCO — German business software maker SAP AG has agreed to buy Sybase Inc. in a $5.8 billion deal that ratchets up SAP’s rivalry with database leader Oracle Corp.

The deal intensifies the battle between SAP and Oracle to run more of the programs that corporations use to manage their data. Oracle is the world’s leading database maker — a market where Sybase is a small player — and has been on a buying binge in an attempt to take business in other areas from SAP.

SAP, headquartered in Walldorf, Germany, says the acquisition will also give it key technology from Sybase that lets business programs run on mobile phones.

Before the announcement, shares of Sybase rose 35 percent to $56.14 on rumors of the deal. In extended trading, stocks rose an additional 15 percent to $64.30.