Lenovo bundles EMC online backup on laptops
September 3rd, 2008 | by admin |BOSTON, Sept 2 (Reuters) - Lenovo Group Ltd (0992.HK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) hasstarted preloading some small-business laptop computers withsoftware to access free trials for online data backup servicesfrom EMC Corp (EMC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).
The software, which will be loaded onto new Lenovo ThinkPadSL notebooks, uses the Internet to automatically back up dataon a computer’s hard drive to a remote data center. The datacan be retrieved over the Web if it is lost on the computer.
EMC entered the fledgling market for online data backupservices with its October 2007 purchase of Mozy.
The companies, which hope customers keep using the serviceafter the free trial expires, did not disclose financial termsof the partnership.
Vance Checketts, chief operating officer of EMC’s Mozybusiness unit, said the deal was similar to ones that computermakers sign with providers of antivirus software.
The terms in such deals generally call for the antivirussoftware providers to either make upfront payments to the PCmakers, or to share revenue when customers buy the serviceafter the free trial expires.
The deal with the Lenovo is the first that EMC’s Mozy unithas signed with a PC maker. Checketts said that it is not anexclusive deal, adding that he hopes to sign up othermanufacturers.
Mozy, which has about 850,000 users, competes with Dell Inc(DELL.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Hewlett-Packard Co (HPQ.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Symantec Corp (SYMC.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz)as well as privately held Carbonite, SOS Online Backup andWebroot. (Reporting by Jim Finkle; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
