Adobe Systems last week announced that it is acquiring software maker Marketo for $4.75bn in a move widely seen as one that will strengthen its position in the fiercely competitive cloud computing and marketing tech sector.

The maker of image-editing tool Photoshop said in a statement that the deal would bring together Marketo’s B2B-focused platform with the capabilities of Adobe Experience Cloud that include analytics, content, personalisation and advertising.

“Adding Marketo’s engagement platform to Adobe Experience Cloud will enable Adobe to offer an unrivaled set of solutions for delivering transformative customer experiences across industries and companies of all sizes,” the statement read.

The deal is Adobe’s biggest ever and, subject to regulatory approval, is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of Adobe’s 2018 fiscal year with each company continuing to operate independently until then.

It also comes just months after Adobe acquired e-commerce specialist Magento for $1.68bn, indicating that the company is highly focused on expanding its presence in the fast-growing cloud sector, which is currently dominated by Microsoft, Oracle and Salesforce.

“It’s a sign that we’re going to see continued consolidation,” said Andrew Frank, an analyst at Gartner, in comments to Business Insider. “I think that a lot of clients are wrestling with this idea of whether they can get a complete solution from a single vendor – there’s not too many things that marketing clouds can’t do that you would need from another provider.”

Meanwhile, Brad Rencher, Adobe’s EVP of digital experience, used a blog post to outline the specifics of what the combined entity is expected to be able to deliver for clients.

He said Adobe and Marketo tools will enable businesses to use a data-driven approach to focus sales and marketing activities on the most valuable prospects and customers, deliver cross-channel experiences and acquire more customers through targeted, account-based advertising.

“The addition of Marketo and Magento to the Adobe family demonstrates our commitment to enhancing our industry-leading platform and solutions, and will further strengthen our ability to deliver significant business results for all our customers,” he said.

Sourced from Adobe, Business Insider; additional content by WARC staff