EMC and IBM in Talks to Acquire SoftLayer for $2 Billion
Both EMC and IBM are reportedly considering a purchase of SoftLayer, a dedicated server, managed hosting, and cloud computing provider based out of Dallas, Texas. The deal, which is being handled by Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse, could be worth as much as $2 billion, a hefty chunk of change for what's currently the world's largest privately held web hosting service.
According to Reuters, SoftLayer warmed to the idea of a buyout after one if its customers, AT&T, approached the company. AT&T has since dropped out of the running.
Image Source: Flickr (Tophost)
Cloud providers are becoming increasingly popular targets in takeover talks as companies look to streamline the performance of their enterprise offerings and ultimately cut costs. As for SoftLayer, the company manages 100,000 servers (10,000 more than rival Rackspace Hosting) in 13 data centers and has over 25,000 customers. Six of its data centers are located in the vicinity of its Dallas, Texas headquarters, while the others span all the way to Singapore and Amsterdam.
According to Reuters, SoftLayer warmed to the idea of a buyout after one if its customers, AT&T, approached the company. AT&T has since dropped out of the running.
Image Source: Flickr (Tophost)
Cloud providers are becoming increasingly popular targets in takeover talks as companies look to streamline the performance of their enterprise offerings and ultimately cut costs. As for SoftLayer, the company manages 100,000 servers (10,000 more than rival Rackspace Hosting) in 13 data centers and has over 25,000 customers. Six of its data centers are located in the vicinity of its Dallas, Texas headquarters, while the others span all the way to Singapore and Amsterdam.
