IBM Happy to Be Rid of Low-End Server Business - NYTimes.com

Meanwhile, Lenovo Sees Server Deal as Part of ‘PC Plus’ Strategy

"In effect, IBM may have sold off a business increasingly dominated by the cloud companies with which it must also compete as it builds out its own cloud. Last year IBM paid $2 billion for a cloud company called Softlayer, and last week said it would spend $1.2 billion just this year building out that business.
 Mr. Mills defended his company’s chances. “Softlayer operates at a cost point equal to Amazon,” he said. “I don’t worry about the competitive issue.” Google, he noted, has agreed to use sophisticated IBM chips in its computer centers. “We’ve had our eyes on the issue for some time,” he said."

IBM Happy to Be Rid of Low-End Server Business - NYTimes.com