Lenovo hints at acquisition to bolster cloud portfolio

PC maker considers buying US startup Stoneware

By Michael Kan, IDG News Service, Beijing, Auckland | Wednesday, 19 September 2012
Lenovo on Tuesday said it plans to acquire Stoneware, a small U.S. based company specializing in cloud products for schools and governments, as part of the PC maker's strategy to bolster its cloud computing offerings.

While Lenovo did not disclose financial terms of the deal, it said it expects to complete the acquisition of the Indianapolis-based Stoneware by year's end.

Stoneware is the developer of a webNetwork, a platform designed to unify an organization's IT services, along with LanSchool, another cloud-based product that allows teachers to distribute and manage content over classroom PCs and devices.

Lenovo plans to use Stoneware's technology to improve the PC maker's cloud products, with a focus on providing secure content for multiple devices in education and government fields. It said it also plans to use the Stoneware acquisition to create more consumer-based cloud offerings over time.

The Chinese company is already the world's second-largest PC vendor and poised to surpass Hewlett-Packard to take the top spot, according to analysts. But it is also focused on other hot gadget areas, including tablets, smartphones and smart TVs. Like others in the tech industry, Lenovo's goal is to create better cloud-based services that will make it easy for users to unify and synch content across all the devices they own.

As part of the acquisition, all 67 of Stoneware's employees will join Lenovo.