HP announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to purchase Mercury Interactive Corp., a leading IT management software and services company, through a cash tender offer for $52.00 per share, or an enterprise value of approximately $4.5 billion, which is net of existing cash and debt.

Upon closing, the acquisition will establish HP's portfolio of IT management software and services as the clear choice for companies seeking to optimise the value that IT brings to business.

The transaction brings together the strength of HP OpenView systems, network and IT service management software with Mercury's strength in application management, application delivery, IT governance and service-oriented architecture governance. This combination provides customers with the industry's most robust suite for optimizing, automating and aligning IT services with business needs.

"Today, we are combining two market-leading businesses to create the most powerful management software portfolio in the industry," said Mark Hurd, HP chief executive officer and president. "Together, they will help customers cut their IT costs, speed the delivery of new services and drive profitable growth at HP. We expect this important acquisition to deliver significant value for our shareholders."

Mercury chief executive officer and president Tony Zingale said, "Together, HP and Mercury have instantly become the industry's premier provider of business technology optimisation (BTO) software. A deal of this magnitude creates significant opportunities for our customers, our shareholders, our people and our partners."

"HP's software strategy is to be the clear leader in end-to-end enterprise IT management and help our customers tightly align IT priorities with changing business requirements," said Thomas E. Hogan, senior vice president, Software, HP.