Siemens services sell-off

But keeps it in the family

Engineering giant Siemens ended months of speculation about its loss-making Siemens Business Services (SBS) unit In December by agreeing to sell the division’s Product Related Services (PRS) activities to Fujitsu Siemens Computers, a Siemens joint venture.

PRS will be run as a separate subsidiary within Fujitsu Siemens Computers when the deal is concluded in April, and will continue to offer vendor-neutral, infrastructure-focused services, the company said. Fujitsu Siemens Computers’ chief executive Bernd Bischoff commented that the deal would improve the vendor’s ability to offer mobile technology and datacentre services in particular.

Separately, India-based IT services giant Wipro has beefed up its capabilities for wireless technology and financial services by acquiring semiconductor design services outfit NewLogic and payment processing specialist mPower.