IBM Obtains Investment Canada Act Clearance for Its Acquisition of Cognos

ARMONK, NY, Jan 31 (MARKET WIRE) --
IBM (NYSE: IBM) announced today that it has received approval of its
proposed acquisition of Cognos (NASDAQ: COGN) (TSX: CSN) from the Canadian
Minister of Industry under the Investment Canada Act.

In connection with the approval under the Investment Canada Act, IBM has
made
several important commitments to the Minister of Industry in relation to Cognos'
operations and employees in Canada that highlight the net benefit of the
acquisition to Canada. These include commitments relating to access to IBM's
global reach, technology portfolio, partner network and customer base in
order to grow sales of Cognos products and solutions, employment levels in
Canada,
the main center of research and development in Canada, the funding of
research and development in Canada, and ensuring that senior managers are either
Canadians or are based in Canada.

IBM plans to combine the Canadian operations of Cognos with IBM Canada's
significant existing operations in Canada to deliver world-class solutions to
address its customers' business challenges, both in Canada and globally. As part
of
IBM, the proven history of customer success that Cognos has built will be
extended to an even broader array of customers and geographies.

Additionally, Rob Ashe, the current president and CEO of Cognos and a
Canadian citizen, is expected to continue to lead this business segment from
Canada, including the integration into IBM, once the acquisition closes.

All regulatory clearances required to complete IBM's acquisition of Cognos
have
now been obtained. IBM expects to close the acquisition shortly.

For more details about the combination of IBM and Cognos, see:
here

Contact:
Chris Andrews
IBM Media Relations
914-766-1195
candrews@us.ibm.com

Copyright 2008, Market Wire, All rights reserved.

-0-