AT&T's Sterling Buys Nistevo

AT&T Inc. subsidiary Sterling Commerce, which focuses on supply chain software and services, has agreed to acquire on-demand transportation management software maker Nistevo.

The addition of Nistevo’s Collaborative Logistics Network expands Sterling Commerce's supply chain applications portfolio to focus on hosted Web-based networks that aim to help transportation companies improve logistics and supply chain operations.

Sterling Commerce said Collaborative Logistics Network has been adopted by more than 60 shippers and 6,400 carriers, and manages approximately 65 million transactions annually.

Companies can use the software to daily freight deliveries. In a report published by AMR Research Inc. earlier this month, analyst Greg Aimi wrote "The single-instance, multi-tenant network model provided by Nistevo is proving more valuable than traditionally deployed transportation management systems."

Sterling Commerce president and chief executive officer Sam Starr said in a statement that the software will offer companies a way to cut costs in an industry estimated by analysts at nearly a trillion dollars in the U.S. alone.

Nistevo chief executive officer Kevin Lynch will have a role as part of the applications group at Sterling Commerce after the deal closes in about one month, according to a Sterling Commerce spokeswoman. More details are expected soon, she said.

Privately held Nistevo, founded in 1997, is headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minn. About 45 employees support customers, such as Church & Dwight Co., The Dial Corp., Tractor Supply, Ocean Spray, Smithfield Foods, Cargill, General Mills, HP Hood, and Seneca Foods.

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