IBM acquires cloud computing company SoftLayer for $2 billion

In a move to bolster its cloud computing services, IBM has purchased Dallas company SoftLayer for a reported $2 billion.

“The acquisition will strengthen IBM’s leadership position in cloud computing and will help speed business adoption of public and private cloud solutions,” IBM said in announcing the acquisition.

SoftLayer is the largest privately held cloud computing firm, according to IBM. SoftLayer serves about 21,000 customers and has 13 data centers throughout the U.S., Asia and Europe. Those will complement the 10 cloud service data centers IBM already has, according to the New York Times, which reported on the value of the deal.

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With the addition of SoftLayer, IBM expects its cloud services to generate $7 billion a year by the end of 2015.

In the last few years, the demand for cloud computing services has risen in the business world as it allows users to work on a shared database using any device with an Internet connection.

The SoftLayer acquisition is expected to close by the third quarter of this year, at which point IBM will launch a new Cloud Services division.

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