2. Cognizant

Company acquired: Frontica Business Solutions

Head count: 1,000 employees

Annual revenue: Not disclosed

Purchase price: $128 million

Date of announcement: Oct. 3

Teaneck, N.J.-based Cognizant entered into an agreement with Norwegian oil services investment company Akastor to purchase the information technology outsourcing and business process outsourcing segments of the Frontica Group.

The deal excludes Oslo, Norway-based Frontica's staffing business, Frontica Advantage. The acquisition is expected to help Cognizant, No. 7 on the 2016 CRN Solution Provider 500, expand its business into new segments and geographies.

Frontica has transformed its business to become a broad commercial provider of ITO and BPO services within the oil and gas industry. The company has expanded its business pipeline significant this year by entering into long-term agreements with key clients that list until 2021.