Intel completed its acquisition of security vendor McAfee in 2011 and then dropped the McAfee name in favour of Intel Security in 2014 although it remained in use as a brand.
However, the pendulum has swung away from IT businesses with fingers in lots of pies.
For example, in 2015 security vendor Symantec reversed its 10-year-old merger with storage software provider Veritas, and in the same year HP split into HP and HPE – effectively a reversal of the 2002 merger of HP and Compaq (the company largely credited with creating with what we now call the commodity hardware industry), although HP had made other significant acquisitions in the intervening years, including consulting group EDS, network hardware vendor 3Com, storage company 3Par, and information management software provider, Autonomy.
And just today iTWire reported that HPE's software business is to be acquired by Micro Focus.
But back to Intel Security, or McAfee as it is being renamed.
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According to a joint statement by Intel and TPG, McAfee will be one of the world's largest pure-play cybersecurity companies. It already protects more than a quarter of a billion endpoints.
McAfee's chief executive will be Christopher Young, currently senior vice-president and general manager of Intel Security.
"Our customers want the reassurance that our strategy has not changed. It hasn't. Our partners need to know our commitment will not falter. It won't. Our employees want to know you are a part of a company positioned to thrive. You are," Young wrote in an open letter.
Other members of the existing Intel Security management team will move to McAfee.
Intel chief executive Brian Krzanich said: "Security remains important in everything we do at Intel and going forward we will continue to integrate industry-leading security and privacy capabilities in our products from the cloud to billions of smart, connected computing devices.
"As we collaborate with TPG to establish McAfee as an independent company, we will also share in the future success of the business and in the market demand for top-flight security solutions, creating long-term value for McAfee's customers, partners, employees and Intel's shareholders. Intel will continue our collaboration with McAfee as we offer safe and secure products to our customers."
TPG co-founder and co-chief executive Jim Coulter said: "We believe that McAfee will thrive as an independent company. With TPG's investment, along with continued support from Intel, McAfee will sharpen its focus and become even more agile in its response to today's rapidly evolving security sector.
"TPG is excited to partner with Intel and McAfee management to accelerate growth of the business by enhancing its go-to-market strategy and continuing to grow and strengthen its core product offerings."
The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2017.
