HP to buy Voltage Security
Hewlett-Packard announced plans to buy data-encryption company Voltage Security in what appears to be a push toward cloud-based security products.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
HP said it fold Cupertino, Calif.-based Voltage into its security division, Atalla. Stanford University professor Daniel Boneh and three of his students founded Voltage in 2002. The next year, according to the San Jose Mercury News, the company launched an early version of “identity-based” e-mail encryption that bypassed the need for a public key in sending encrypted e-mail. Since then, Voltage has broadened its offerings to include protecting corporate data. The previously venture-backed company paid particular attention to payment data, working with large processors to protect consumers’ financial data.
Theft of corporate data has made headlines in recent years in the face of high-profile attacks on companies such as Sony and Target.
The deal is expected to close by the end of the first half of 2015.
Telecity, Interxion plan significant European data center merger
U.K.-based Telecity Group and Interxion Holding have entered into a non-binding merger agreement that would form a data center operator with a combined value of $4.5 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal.
However, on a media/analyst call discussing the merger, Telecity CEO John Hughes reportedly said that there was a chance that an “interloper” might still derail the deal before it closes.
The merger, which would consolidate two companies covering essentially the same markets, is in response to skyrocketing demand for digital services in Europe.
Under the terms of the agreement, Interxion shareholders would receive 2.3386 new Telecity shares for each Interxion share. With a market cap of $2.63 billion, Telecity operates in major European cities including London, Paris and Frankfurt. Interxion, which has traded on the NYSE since 2011, has 39 data centers in 11 European countries. It is valued at about $1.94 billion.
With more Europeans using more data on mobile phones, the need for data centers has increased.
Analysts praised the deal in a Wall Street Journal article. Barclays analyst Maurice Patrick said it creates the “dominant European independent retail co-location player.” Meanwhile, Cavendish analyst Nick Jones described the merger as a “significant milestone” for an industry seeking to consolidate.
