EMC to Buy Data Storage Company Isilon for $2.25 Billion

Data storage firm EMC Corp. (EMC) will buy scale-out storage company Isilon Systems for $2.25 billion, the companies announced Monday.

The deal, which values Isilon at a price of $33.85 per share, is expected to complete before the end of this year, EMC said in a statement.

The acquisition will allow EMC to boost its presence in the storage of so-called Big Data. Big Data describes the information produced by applications in sectors such as media, life sciences and energy.

"The unmistakable waves of cloud computing and 'Big Data' are upon us," said Joe Tucci, CEO of EMC. "Customers are looking for new ways to store, protect, secure and add intelligence to the vast amounts of information they will accumulate over the next decade."

EMC reaffirmed its outlook for 2010, forecasting revenues of $16.9 billion and earnings per share of 91 cents.