In keeping with our mission to provide comprehensive advertising analysis, MediaRadar puts together a report of the most important mergers and acquisitions news each week. Stay in the loop, whether you sell advertising space or focus on business development.

This week, consulting company Accenture acquires an energy company, Google acquires a data analytics firm, and CBS and Viacom are set to resume their merger negotiations.

Bridge Energy Group Acquired By Accenture

Accenture has acquired Boston-based Bridge Energy Group as a way to capitalize on grid modernization and integration in the security services provider industry.

While terms of the deal were not disclosed to the public, Accenture managing director Stephanie Jamison believes the acquisition will help uncover new revenue streams for the company: “[The acquisition] will help us meet growing demand from our utilities clients for evaluating and applying new and emerging technologies, including advanced analytics, artificial intelligence, the cloud, and blockchain.”

Bridge employees have joined the utilities division working under Accenture.

Google Acquires Looker Data Sciences

Google announced that it is acquiring big data analytics firm Looker Data Sciences for $2.6 billion in cash.

This deal represents the first major acquisition for Google’s cloud division under its new Cloud Chief Executive Thomas Kurian.

Google is currently the world’s third largest cloud computing service provider with 7.6% market share, trailing behind Amazon at 32% and Microsoft at 13.7%. Looker and Google already shared over 350 customers including BuzzFeed, Blue Apron and Yahoo. This acquisition will provide Google customers with a new analytics tool, which will give them the ability to discover business intelligence and analyze data in a more integrated way.

CBS Corporation Exploring Merger with Viacom

Buckle your seatbelts: CNBC is reporting that CBS and Viacom are once again traversing the often chaotic waters of a potential merger.

Burdened by the near ubiquity of streaming services among consumers, shares of both companies experienced a jump about a week ago after the initial reporting was published, with Viacom rising 4% and CBS rising 3.2%.

Many media companies in the television industry are rapidly adjusting their business strategies to compete with the progressively tumultuous media landscape. Stakeholders at CBS involved in the negotiations have expressed hesitations with several aspects of a potential merger, namely Viacom’s $8 billion in debt and its increasingly dismal ratings.

But since the aborted talks last year, Viacom has improved its financial health after entering into a distribution deal with AT&T — and the ouster of Chief Executive Leslie Moonves after an embarrassing sexual harassment scandal broke out last fall eliminated another obstacle to merger talks. Representatives from both CBS and Viacom have declined to make any public comments about the news.

In Other News

These are some other notable deals or developments from the past week:

Apptio, a software company focused on digital transformation for enterprises, has acquired Cloudability, one of the market leaders in cloud-based financial management software development.
Elliott Management Corporation, the largest activist fund in the world, announced this morning its intent to acquire bookseller Barnes & Noble for roughly $683 million including debt.
The semiconductor industry continues to expand rapidly, as Cypress Semiconductors has entered into an agreement to be acquired by Infineon Technologies for an estimated $10 billion.
Multinational cybersecurity company Palo Alto Networks, Inc. announced that it is acquiring container security company Twistlock Inc. and the serverless security company PureSec.
Health insurance company Anthem has reached an agreement to acquire Beacon Health Options, the largest privately-held behavioral health organization in the U.S.
Online pet food retailer Chewy (a subsidiary of PetSmart) has filed to go public, with a minimum share price at $17 and a valuation of $7 billion.