EMC set to buy its smaller rival Isilon in $2.3bn deal
EMC, the biggest maker of corporate data storage equipment, plans to buy smaller rival Isilon Systems for $2.25bn (£1.4bn) as consolidation in the technology sector gains steam.
EMC’s $33.85-a-share cash offer for Isilon, announced by both companies yesterday, represents a 29 per cent premium over Isilon’s closing share price on Friday. Isilon shares were at $33.77 in afternoon Nasdaq trade, just eight cents shy of the offer price.
The growing popularity of online video from media companies, and new software from industries like life sciences, particularly related to gene sequencing, are expected to generate exponentially large amounts of data.
Data storage companies have been among the hottest targets in the recent round of consolidation as they play a crucial role in “cloud computing” – the use of technology to access remote computing power and data over the Internet.