The role of text mining of patent in Mergers and Acquisitions

Technology strategy plays an increasingly important role in today´s Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) activity, especially that aiming to obtain key technology capabilities. A big challenge that faces corporate managers and government policy makers is how to bring technology development prospects into play in order to help enterprises complement and strengthen their advantages. In this study, based on text mining of patents, we devise a method for extracting technology intelligence to facilitate M&A, focusing on potential targets by assessing technological synergy value for a firm. We present results pertaining to technology M&A in the field of numerical control systems in China.