Dell buys Perot Systems in $3.9bn deal

Dell says it has agreed to buy the IT services company Perot Systems for about $3.9bn as it looks to expand beyond the PC business.

On Monday Dell said it will offer $30 per share in cash for Perot, which is based in Plano, Texas, 200 miles away.

The PC giant said it expects to close the deal in the November-January quarter.

According to Dell, Perot, founded by former US presidential candidate Ross Perot, will expand the company's IT services offerings and widen the pool of potential customers for its computers.

Perot Systems is known for offering services for applications, technology, infrastructure, business processes and consulting. It has clients in health care, government and other commercial segments, from SMEs to large global institutions; it also has a large and growing base of customers and service-delivery capabilities in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Asia.

In the last year, Dell and Perot had a combined $16bn in enterprise-hardware and IT-services revenue, with about $8bn from enhanced services and support, the companies said.

Once the acquisition is complete, Perot will become Dell's services unit and be led from Plano by Peter Altabef, the current Perot Systems chief executive officer.

Dell directors are expected to consider Ross Perot Jr, Perot Systems' chairman of the board, for appointment to the Dell board.