History was made when IBM, who first pioneered the PC business in 1981, sold that very PC-making business to Lenovo, China's largest personal computer company. The deal, worth an estimated $1.25 billion, signals the end of IBM's presence in this industry, and is also the largest overseas acquisition by a Chinese company.
IBM will now be able to focus more exclusively on higher-margin businesses such as computer services and software. Lenovo gets to use a Western brand to make its mark on the world stage, but at a high price - they must pay IBM $650 million in cash, $600 million in stock and assume $500 million in debt. Lenovo will also have to move its headquarters from Beijing to New York and possibly list shares on Nasdaq or the New York Stock Exchange. The deal is expected to close in Q2 of next year.