Solectron buys Stream

Stream International, once one of the world's biggest resellers of software, has a new owner.

Step forward, Solectron, the contract manufacturer for outsourcing companies, which is acquiring privately-held Stream for an undisclosed sum.

Operating in nine countries, and headquartered in Massachusetts, Stream handles support and logistics for tech companies, especially software firms. It has 10,000 customer support agents. The company is backed by Bain Capital and reports revenues of $323m for FY2000.

Stream was set up in 1995, through the merger of Corporate Software & Technology, a significant reseller name at the time, and the Global Software Division of RR Donnelly, a printing and packaging specialist.

At the time, the merger looked peculiar, but hindsight shows that Corporate Software would struggled to survive on its own. ®