Diverse interests
The PC sector is generally expected to have a tough time of it over the next few months and two of the companies most exposed to it are Intel and Dell. So today's announcements of further diversification away from this sector by both of them are timely.
Intel is buying Texas Instrument's cable modem product line, which may seem a rather odd direction for Intel to be heading in. That's until you consider the increasing focus Intel is putting on TVs are another outlet for its chips - specifically the low-power ones - and the recent announcement of its involvement in Google TV.
"Adding the talents of the Texas Instruments' cable team to Intel's efforts to bring its advanced technology to consumer electronics makes for a compelling combination," said Bob Ferreira, GM at Intel's digital home group.
"Intel is focused on delivering SoCs that provide the foundation for consumer electronics devices such as set top boxes, digital TVs, Blu-ray disc players, companion boxes and related devices. This acquisition specifically strengthens Intel's product offerings for the continuum of cable gateway products and reinforces Intel's continued commitment to the cable industry."
Meanwhile, Dell's response to its own, and the broader industry's stuggles is to continue to move in the direction of high-value enterprise services. It's acquiring 3PAR - a company that specialises in highly-virtualised storage solutions - for $1.15 billion.
Coupled with its acquisition of EqualLogic in early 2008, this acquisition positions Dell strongly to compete with the likes of EMC and HDS, as well as enterprise computing giants IBM and HP. Virtualised storage is a technology that enables multiple, diverse storage assets to be managed as one.
"We have aligned our storage offerings over the last several years to provide our customers choice and value," said Brad Anderson, SVP of Dell's enterprise product group. "3PAR brings the same values of performance, agility and ease-of-use to higher end, virtualized storage deployments as EqualLogic does for the entry-level and mid-range, rounding out our industry-leading solutions portfolio."
