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The tech sphere is constantly expanding and adapting, and large corporations are continuously diversifying business models. For that reason, today's partner or service provider could be tomorrow's competitor. Native programming is essential to independence, reducing the influence of companies with competing interests. 

On this blog, we recently discussed Uber's acquisition of deCarta, a digital mapping service. One of the most interesting aspects of that deal is how it could decrease the ride service's dependence on Google Maps. If speculation that Google could enter the ride share marketplace comes to pass, in the coming years the Silicon Valley-based tech giant might launch a credible competitor to Uber.

"Try to avoid gossiping and speculation," he cautions. "Focus on the work at hand. Of course, it doesn't hurt to do some networking while you are waiting for the outcome of the merger or acquisition, but avoid jumping at the first job that comes your way. Many times people get promoted during acquisitions and some get retention bonuses for taking on the risk of staying with the company."

It was announced recently that the open source company Docker has acquired Orchard Laboratories. Docker is a company that creates an open platform for developers, according to a CRN article. It allows developers to "build any app in any language using any toolchain," according to a description on the company's website.

Amazon has announced its intention to acquire Rooftop Media, an online service that gives comedy fans access to content produced by professional comedians, for an undisclosed amount.

On this blog, we recently discussed 2015's ambitious start to the first quarter, but a new study about 2014 tech M&A activity puts the rapid growth into perspective. According to Tech World, the total value of mergers and acquisitions in the tech industry hit the $1 trillion mark last year.

For some companies, the decision to merge or be acquired is an easy one to make. For example, a small firm with very limited resources might need to be purchased for it to have any hope of reaching its growth objectives. On the other hand, a firm in a narrow market might see a competitor with whom it makes perfect sense to merge equitably.

Many are accustomed to thinking of "spring cleaning" as a set of chores to tidy up a home or office. However, tech companies seeking to merge, acquire or be acquired in 2015 might want to conduct a spring cleaning of their brand presentation.

On this blog, we've discussed the importance of sharpening your elevator pitch. It might seem implausible that you would literally find yourself in an elevator with the executive who will buy your company, but it's likely that you're networking in circles where making the best, briefest case for your firm is important.

For a company as big as Apple, a single app has many channels of development. This week, it was revealed that Apple acquired Ottocat, a search engine company that has helped to develop the "explore" tab in Apple's app store application. In an unusual twist, it turns out that Apple purchased Ottocat years ago, as early as May 2013.

For companies in any stage of an M&A deal, carefully cultivating their corporate images is critical to success. This year, a host of new domain names will allow individuals and businesses to purchase websites with unusual words after the [dot]. Where websites have traditionally relied on .com, .org, .net and other popular domains, those have expanded to include .baby, .app and .fish.

Like the tech market, the food marketplace has seen rapid growth of diversity over the last decade. As established brands attempt to make an impression in the industry, sometimes company mergers are the most prudent way to optimize the operations of both companies involved. When businesses grow as large as they can on their own, the next logical step is often to combine forces with a peer in the industry. With tremendous stature in the food space, Heinz and Kraft stand to make an even greater impact in supermarkets.

When arriving at the terms of a merger or acquisition, third party avenues exist for executives to evaluate the sticker price of a company. However, experts say that the ultimate price a larger company pays for a smaller firm comes down to less objective metrics.

"Key members of our team are joining the company and will be working hard to integrate our technology to make the ads you see on Facebook every day better and more relevant to you," The Find said in a statement. "Unfortunately, this means we will be taking our search engine offline in the next few weeks."

"Value is in the eye of the beholder," explains Carolyn Brown in a blog post for Inc. Magazine. "Generally speaking, market value is one indicator. Other price factors are capitalization of earnings, discounted cash flow, and net return of assets or equity.

"EMC is a behemoth of a corporate IT business," he writes. "It is among the largest providers of storage hardware in the world. It also makes servers and owns security company RSA, which is known for its hard-to-crack SecurID tokens. And its most prized possession is its 81% stake in VMware - the company that rules the world of virtualization software that allows businesses to run various operating systems on their devices."

"The long, slow demise was an unsuccessful wait for a white knight, which could have been AOL," writes David Yi of Mashable. "[Sources say] that the company was still chugging along in hopes that it would attract a bigger media brand to sell to. One they were eyeing was AOL, which agreed to observe LuckyMag.com's traffic for a couple of months. When AOL decided to go in a different direction, Beachmint's CEO and co-founder Josh Berman finally pulled the last trigger this week."

Few industries have been more transformed by technology than travel. Gone are the days when travel agents in physical offices meet with customers to arrange business and leisure trips. All the details, from booking flights to finding a place to crash, can now be worked out online by the consumer. In addition to driving prices down through cost comparison tools and online discounts, lodging, booking and itinerary systems have made taking a trip less cumbersome.

This week, popular booking site Expedia announced that it will acquire HomeAway, the publicly traded vacation rental service, for $3.9 billion. HomeAway is often described as a competitor to Airbnb and other discount lodging sites with listings by homeowners. However, several other companies and sites fall under the HomeAway umbrella.

Company officials, such as Expedia's CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, explained that it has been interested in expanding its services through integrating alternative accommodations into its existing business structure and believes that buying HomeAway is the most effective step in achieving this goal, according to USA Today.