Omega tipped to join forces with rival

System builders Omega Electronic Equipment (Europe) and Comet-data Marketing are in the throes of finalising a merger which will end years of cutthroat competition between the two.

The Staffordshire companies, which build own-branded PCs, are believed to be finalising a union which is due to be completed by the beginning of December.

One industry source said: 'Both companies are fierce rivals of one another but a merger will mean they can fill in the gaps in each other's strategy.'

He stated: 'Cometdata has a very acute financial standing while Omega is a strong company in terms of its sales acumen.'

The source added that following Dixons' purchase of Byte earlier this year (PC Dealer, 8 April), Omega lost a large chunk of business but said: 'The company managed to overcome that.'

James Bird, managing director and major shareholder at Omega, declined to comment on whether a merger was imminent and refused to confirm or deny that the companies were in discussions.

However, Mark Challis, financial controller at Cometdata said: 'I know of the company - it is one of our main competitors.' But he added: 'I have nothing to comment on at this stage.'

A source said the merger will be based on a stock swap and Omega will become a holding company for the joint operation.

He added: 'When Omega and Cometdata go for the same contract, they end up undercutting each other, so this merger will give both companies room to grow.'

Omega was established in 1991 and has more than 100 employees, while Cometdata has 50.