by Anton Shilov
03/22/2006 | 09:24 PM
Dell Inc., the world’s largest maker of personal computers, announced Wednesday that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Alienware, a maker of gaming systems. The move will help Dell to address the lucrative market of gaming computers better, which may have impact on Dell’s profit margins.
<%BANNER[article]%>Dell said Alienware will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary following completion of the transaction and will maintain its own product development, product marketing, sales, technical support and other operations as well as brand. The management and founders of Alienware will continue to operate the company as a standalone unit of Dell.
“Alienware’s products are an excellent complement to Dell’s own line of high-performance computers designed for gaming, enthusiast and media content customers. In addition to offering high-quality, high-performance products, Alienware has tremendous brand appeal with consumers and creative business professionals,” said Michael Dell, chairman of Dell Inc.
Even though Dell has been offering its gaming personal computers (PCs) for quite a while now, given that they all were based on processors from Intel Corp., which have not won gaming benchmarks for years now, the demand towards such PCs could not be as high as expected. Since Alienware offers both AMD- and Intel-based systems, it may have much higher success in providing gamers what they need. Additionally, Alienware will be able to get computer components from Dell now, which means better costs.
“Alienware has a legacy of success designing the highest-performance PCs using bleeding -edge technologies and innovative industrial design. We believe that Alienware will realize significant advantages from Dell’s world-class supply chain and operational efficiencies. They will allow us to continue to satisfy our core customers with the most innovative and highest-performing PCs, and ultimately extend the reach and appeal of the Alienware brand,” said Nelson Gonzalez, chief executive of Alienware.
Terms of the planned purchase will not be disclosed.