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Apple has invested in a lot of industries, but social media has not generally been one of them. Apart from the short-lived Ping, which allowed iTunes users to share their favorite songs with friends, the company has left that particular specialty to others. But that may change.

Yahoo has announced its acquisition of mobile app startup Ptch, according to a report by CNet. Launched about a year ago with financial help from DreamWorks, Ptch lets users create montage videos from photos that they have taken, resulting in slideshows and even stop-motion videos.

Zebra Technologies makes printers for receipts, RFID, barcodes and kiosks. The company has already worked with Motorola Solutions for years, according to TechCrunch. This acquisition strategy will allow the two companies to join forces and continue providing the services they have previously worked on together. Previously, Motorola Solutions' handheld scanners were used to scan codes manufactured by Zebra Technologies.

Travel & Expense (T&E) management software corporation SAP SE, based in Germany, has arranged for its subsidiary SAP America, Inc. to acquire Washington-based T&E software provider Concur Technologies in an $8.3 billion agreement ($129 per share), GigaOm reports.

Adobe has given technology users a suite of programs that helps with content creation. From Photoshop to InDesign and the convenient PDF format, the company is responsible for many of the products and applications professionals and creative types use every day.

Deloitte has continued its flurry of recent moves with two technology acquisitions - NXG, a provider of SAP solutions, and Quattro, a customer relations management software company. Both businesses are based in Australia. The acquisitions are expected to be finalized by November 1. Deloitte did not announce the financial terms of either agreement.

"Chemical and process industries have always been strategic focus areas for YASH and the acquisition of the well regarded industry specialist SpectraSoft, aligns well with YASH's vision to capture more market share in the process industry vertical," Manoj Baheti, Founder and CEO of YASH Technologies, said in a statement.

Merge Healthcare's technology involves an imaging management system, which will likely be combined with the cloud-based health analytics computing program IBM has devised. At present, IBM technology is capable of analyzing large volumes of data and interprets complex questions stated in natural language. As that technology evolves, more breakthroughs may be in store for health care providers who depend on accurate, comprehensive assessments. 

Details of the transaction were not made available, but both companies released statements affirming their satisfaction with the terms, and optimism about their ability to enhance "digital wallet" technology. As customers become more reliant on tech devices for their finance management, more mobile payment methods have proliferated in the marketplace. LoopPay will work primarily with the mobile division of Samsung to bolster its movement toward app-based payment technology. 

As evidenced by this recent agreement, business acquisitions can provide companies with the resources they need to satisfy their customers' robust needs and expand their offerings. In most cases, these deals are advantageous to everyone involved, which is why they are so popular in a number of different industries.

Thermo Fisher Scientific, the world's largest maker of laboratory equipment, recently announced that it had completed its acquisition of Life Technologies Corporation. The deal, valued at $13.6 billion, was originally announced in April 2013, but was put on hold pending antitrust approval from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Our combined offering provides cutting-edge technologies, such as genomics and proteomics, to accelerate life sciences research and improve human health," Casper said. "And our complementary strengths in biosciences and bioprocessing will accelerate drug discovery, development and production.

Thermo Fisher Scientific, the world's largest maker of laboratory equipment, recently announced that it had completed its acquisition of Life Technologies Corporation. The deal, valued at $13.6 billion, was originally announced in April 2013, but was put on hold pending antitrust approval from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Makers Studios creates, promotes and distributes videos aimed at adults in their 20s and early 30s and attracts over 5 billion views a month. This technology acquisition would give Disney a larger presence in the growing online video market.

Andover, Massachusetts-based Veveo provides predictive search technology to major telecommunications companies like AT&T, Cablevision and Verizon to help users find videos relevant to their interests. The deal will complement the services already provided by Rovi including customer-target promotions and advertising. The two companies will also integrate Rovi's language software that allow users to give vocal commands to search for content. 

"I think it's a really interesting space," Under Armour founder Kevin Plank told the news source. "I remember being at the NFL Combine a few years ago and watching these scouts with their handheld stopwatches and thinking, 'there has to be a better way to do this.' MapMyFitness and Armour39 provide real data for athletes, coaches, trainers or just someone who has a goal of walking 10,000 steps a day."

Photonic systems work through the transmission and detection of light, and have many applications, especially in the telecommunications, defense, space and life sciences industries. The Wall Street Journal reports that Constelex, though only four years old, has amassed a respectable reputation in its industry and has used that to secure contracts from the European Space Agency for satellite work.

Yahoo has announced its acquisition of mobile app startup Ptch, according to a report by CNet. Launched about a year ago with financial help from DreamWorks, Ptch lets users create montage videos from photos that they have taken, resulting in slideshows and even stop-motion videos.

Hudson Square Research analyst Daniel Ernst told Reuters that the deal is potentially risky in the sense that franchises in the mobile market have been tenuous, like in the cases of Zynga and Glu. However, SoftBank likes to think long-term and has a very talented team.

Facebook announced that it purchased Onavo, which is a mobile app business that also helps people cut cellular phone costs through more efficient use of data. According to Reuters, the technology acquisition will help Facebook provide internet access to underserved communities. Mainly, this will be done by Onavo's technology reducing the amount of data downloads required to run mobile internet applications.