IBM has announced that it named Profitero the IBM Global Entrepreneur of the Year and winner of its SmartCamp competition for startup companies. Profitero analyzes competitor pricing data, offering retailers new levels of insight to help them maximize profits by adjusting pricing and merchandising strategies.

IBM is working with entrepreneurs around the world to uncover and bring to market innovative new ideas in key growth areas such as business analytics and smarter commerce. As the volume of data on the planet grows, the ability to quickly transform data into insight is critical for success. Profitero represents a new generation of entrepreneurs entering the market with technology designed to capitalize on the big data analytics opportunity.

"We are honored to be named the IBM Global Entrepreneur of the Year," said Volodymyr Pigrukh, chief executive officer and co-founder, Profitero. "Our solution is a natural complement to IBM's smarter commerce strategy. We are looking forward to working with IBM and its network of technical experts, business partners, venture capitalists, academics and clients to capture our share of the smarter commerce opportunity."

To learn more about Profitero and their win:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sgu83zhDGBg.  To read about the event visit http://asmarterplanet.com/blog/2012/02/ibm-smartcamp-finals-and-the-winner-is.html and to join the conversation search for #IBMSmartCamp on Twitter.

"Profitero is a great example of the kind of startup company that IBM is partnering with around the world to build a smarter planet," said Jim Corgel, general manager entrepreneur programs, IBM. "We look forward to working with Profitero to combine big data expertise with retail insights and entrepreneurial innovation to create new smarter commerce solutions for retailers."

IBM SmartCamps are designed to provide entrepreneurs with the mentoring and insight needed to innovate in their markets. Past participants from IBM SmartCamp competitions have captured the attention of the venture capital community with nearly $50 million in investments, and have expanded to new global markets.

IDXP Named Winner of People's Vote

IDXP was named the winner of the People's Vote Award for the IBM SmartCamp Global Finals, with a record number of votes cast at asmarterplanet.com. IDXP's consumer behavior solution installs sensors in stores and shopping carts to help retailers better understand consumer behavior.

In addition to Profitero, the winner of SmartCamp London and IDXP, the winner of SmartCamp Rio de Janeiro, this year's SmartCamp Global finalists included: BitCarrier, C-B4 Context Based 4Casting, ConnectM, IDXP, Localytics, Palmap, Profitero,SecureWaters and SkinScan.

Speakers at the IBM SmartCamp Global Finals included California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, leading venture capitalists and investment bankers including Bill Reichert, Promod Haque and John China, and Zia Yusuf, CEO of Streetline, the 2010 IBM Global Entrepreneur of the Year.

Watch program highlights, interviews and presentations from the venture capitalists and entrepreneurs on LiveStream.

More information about IBM SmartCamp Global Finals is available at www.ibm.com/press/smartcamp.

For more information about the IBM Global Entrepreneur initiative, visit http://www.ibm.com/isv/startup.