IBM resurrects plans to sell low-end server business

IBM hasn't given up on the idea of selling its low-end server business, and may be exploring additional routes that would provide a sale.

Big Blue and Lenovo held talks last year over a potential deal to handover the part of IBM's business that deals with low-end servers -- not a particularly high profit driver, but still a technology with a place in the corporate world. The sale of the x86 server business reached intense levels, but eventually broke down due to arguments over a sale price.

Despite the setback, according to the Wall Street Journal, people close to the matter say other parties are considering the business acquisition. The publication says that Dell is one such option, although it is not known how seriously the option to buy the x86 server business is being taken.

It is also unknown if Chinese firm Lenovo is still interested in the acquisition.

According to IDC, in Q3 2013, worldwide server revenues dipped by 3.7 percent to $12.1 billion. In total, 2.3 million units were shipped worldwide with Hewlett-Packard in the lead, stealing back the top position from IBM, which experienced an estimated revenue drop of 19.4 percent.

While IBM does not reveal how much revenue its x86 server unit business generates, Morgan Stanley estimates that the business generated roughly $4.9 billion in 2012. However, as technology advances, cloud computing has resulted in fewer server sales.

Last week, IBM revealed an investment of $1.2 billion in to the expansion of data centers focused on cloud technologies worldwide. The firm said it will build an additional 15 centers, bringing the total count to 40 by the end of 2014. IBM says that cloud-based corporate services could be a market worth up to $200 billion by 2020, and the expansion is required to stay competitive in the face of growing client demand.