Fujitsu eyes more M&A to boost software operations

TOKYO, May 19 (Reuters) - Japan's Fujitsu Ltd (6702.T) said it would consider more acquisitions to improve its software line-up as part of its plans to beef up its overseas business and to better compete with rivals like IBM (IBM.N) and Hewlett-Packard (HPQ.N).

Competition in the global IT sector is growing fiercer, with the industry going through a wave of shake-ups, including Oracle's (ORCL.O) purchase of Sun Microsystems (JAVA.O) and Cisco Systems' (CSCO.O) entry into the server market.

Richard Christou, head of Fujitsu's global operations, said the company needs to boost its software and solution businesses outside of Japan, and it may do so through acquisitions, alliances with third parties, or by building them up on its own.

"I do think there are a lot of companies that made a success of buying up smaller software houses with a particular solution, and I think that's perfectly possible," he told reporters.

Fujitsu, Japan's biggest computer server vendor and No. 2 PC maker, is desperate to boost its global presence in IT as there are few growth prospects in the domestic market and the global economic slump has battered its chip and electronics operations.

It bought out a computer venture with Siemens (SIEGn.DE) in April, and it has also acquired Telstra Corp's (TLS.AX) IT services unit Kaz Group and consulting firm Supply Chain Consulting, both in Australia. (Reporting by Sachi Izumi; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)