What Could The IBM-Lenovo Deal Mean For The Server, Storage Industries?

Beneath The Headlines, A Big Shift In The Server, Storage Business

Lenovo and IBM on Thursday said they finally came to a deal under which Lenovo will acquire part of IBM's server business for about $2.3 billion in cash and Lenovo shares.

The headlines, and much of the press hoopla, around the world tends to simplify the deal as one under which Lenovo is buying IBM's x86 server business, or part of it, or in some cases even making it appear as if the entire IBM server business is at stake.

Actually, the two vendors spell out in some detail what is included -- and not included -- in this new deal. And a deeper look at those details shows that the reverberations from the acquisition will ripple far beyond IBM's and Lenovo's server businesses.

Turn the page for a product line-by-product line look at what Lenovo is and is not buying, and what that means for both the server and the storage industry.