WRAL Tech Wire

 Can Dell Software be a winner? Yes, but speed is crucial

Analysis: With no legacy software business to protect, and a midmarket presence, acquisition and integration strategy, the new Dell Software division enjoys an edge over enterprise software vendors IBM, Microsoft and HP. TBR believes Dell Software has the IP and team to do this -- but the speed of full integration remains unknown.

Investor Icahn tries for Dell again with new bid

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn has teamed with Dell's largest independent shareholder, Southeastern Asset Management, to pitch a deal that would let Dell shareholders keep their stake in the company.

 Citing falling PC sales, Blackstone drops bid for Dell

Blackstone Group has pulled out of bidding for Dell Inc. amid concerns about the personal-computer maker's finances and the worsening outlook for global PC sales.

 Dell, Icahn agree on a share ownership cap

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn agreed to accumulate no more than a 10 percent stake in Dell Inc. as he continues to pursue an alternative to a $24.4 billion leveraged buyout by founder Michael Dell.

Dell's new ultrabook

 Stock in Microsoft, others linked to PCs drop as computer sales plunge

If fewer people are interested in buying a new personal computer, then fewer investors want to own stakes in companies whose fortunes are tied to the sales of laptop and desktop machines.

 PC sales plunge; IDC says consumers 'shun Windows 8'

The last time worldwide PC shipments experienced a double- digit percentage decline was in the third quarter of 2001, when the market was roiled by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and the impact of a decline in technology stocks

Screen shot of new Windows 8 start screen

 Blackstone reportedly sidesteps issue of post-buyout role at Dell for Michael Dell

If Michael Dell doesn't get a deal he likes from a victorious Blackstone, he will cash out his 15.6 percent stake and walk away from the company he started 29 years ago while in college, Bloomberg news reports.

 Michael Dell delivers pep talk: 'We've made so much progress ...'

Dell Chief Executive Officer Michael Dell, seeking to rally employees amid buyout negotiations, says in a memo he's made headway in efforts to transform the computer maker into a broader provider of business products.

 Lenovo, PC makers must reboot as mobile device sales surge

Analysis: In response to the surge in mobile devices, especially smartphones and tablets, which recorded unit shipment increases of 37.6 percent and 39.3 percent, respectively, PC makers will aggressively fill their ecosystems will innovative products aimed at countering their mobile- and tablet-centric rivals.

Microsoft's Surface

 Michael Dell wants guarantee to stay as Dell CEO in buyout deal

Dell Inc. founder Michael Dell will only consider backing a buyout by Blackstone Group LP if the private-equity firm guarantees he can remain as chief executive officer, Bloomberg news reports.

 Dell confirms outside bids may top offer from its founder

Blackstone Group LP and activist investor Carl Icahn submitted proposals to buy Dell that would rival a $24.4 billion buyout offer from Silver Lake Management LLC and company founder Michael Dell.

 Dell deal faces competition; Blackstone could top $24.4B offer

Blackstone is so intrigued with the prospect of owning Dell that the private equity firm firm has been courting former Hewlett-Packard Co. CEO Mark Hurd to run Dell if it decides to mount a hostile takeover attempt.

 Dell's list of possible buyers now includes private equity firm Blackstone

Blackstone may bid on PC-maker Dell as part of a group including other investors and the New York-based private- equity firm hasn't made a decision. Dell's board has through March 22 to seek other offers.

Dell's new ultrabook

 Sources: Lenovo, HP unlikely to make bids for Dell

Lenovo could vault past HP to become the world's PC maker if it were to acquire Dell, which is attempting to go private but is under pressure from shareholders to seek a better offer. But that possibility appears to have weakened, sources say.

 Lenovo, HP reportedly among possible suitors of Dell

As Dell's board seeks higher bids than the $24.4 billion go-private package put together by company founder Michael Dell, Lenovo and HP emerge as possible bidders.

 Server sales report packs good IBM, Cisco, Red Hat news

IBM has made noise about getting out of hardware sales, but a new report on servers might change that. Big Blue rebounded to show a strong performance in 2012. Cisco and Red Hat also can find plenty of encouraging data in IDC's update.

IDC server report good news for IBM, Cisco

 Dell 4Q profit falls in shrinking PC market

Dell Inc., (NASDAQ:DELL) the computer maker planning to go private in a $24.4 billion deal, reported fiscal fourth-quarter sales and profit that topped analysts' estimates, a sign of buoyant demand for servers and software. But Dell's net income fell 31 percent in the latest quarter as the company continued to be hurt by a shrinking PC market.

 Second largest investor in Dell also opposes buyout

T. Rowe Price Group, the second-largest outside investor in Dell Inc., said it won't support the proposed $24.4 billion buyout of the computer maker because it undervalues the company.

 Dell shares trade above Michael Dell's buyout offer

Shares in Dell., which last week agreed to be taken private, closed above the offer price for the first time since the announcement after the computer maker's largest outside shareholder said the proposed deal undervalues it.

 Opposition mounts against Michael Dell's buyout plan

Michael Dell faces mounting opposition to his plan to take Dell private as the company's largest outside shareholder vowed to block the $24 billion buyout because it "grossly undervalues" the personal computer maker.