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In one of the biggest mergers in the IT space, Microsoft on Monday said it will acquire professional networking platform LinkedIn in an all-cash transaction valued at $26.2 billion.
Take a look at the 10 biggest IT deals ever:
Deal: Dell Inc buys EMC
Rank: 1
Amount: $67 billion
Year: 2015
The Round Rock, Texas-based, Dell - a privately owned multinational computer technology company is named after its founder, Michael Dell.
Dell sells personal computers (PCs), servers, data storage devices, network switches, software, computer peripherals, HDTVs, cameras, printers, MP3 players, and electronics built by other manufacturers.
EMC, based in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, sells high-price data-storage systems to corporate customers.
Deal: Avago Technologies buys Broadcom
Rank: 2
Amount: $37 billion
Year: 2015
Singapore-based-Avago makes analog and mixed-signal chips for automotive, industrial and communications applications. It also makes custom chips known as ASICS that are used in networking.
Headquartered in Irvine, California, Broadcom Corporation makes radios for cellphones and other consumer devices, plus chips used in networking equipment for the data centre.
Deal: Microsoft buys LinkedIn
Rank: 3
Amount: $26.2 billion
Year: 2016
Microsoft Corp agreed to buy LinkedIn Corp for $26.2 billion in cash. "Today is a re-founding moment for LinkedIn," Reid Hoffman, chairman of LinkedIn's board, said in a statement. Jeff Weiner will remain chief executive of LinkedIn, reporting to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.
The deal is expected to close in 2016.
The Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft Corporation develops, manufactures, licenses, supports and sells computer software, consumer electronics and personal computers and services. Its best known software products are the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems, Microsoft Office office suite, and Internet Explorer and Edge web browsers.
LinkedIn is a business-oriented social networking service.
Deal: Facebook buys WhatsApp
Rank: 4
Amount: $22 billion
Year: 2014
The Menlo Park, California-based Facebook is a for-profit corporation and online social networking service company.
Based in Mountain View, California WhatsApp Messenger is a proprietary cross-platform, encrypted, instant messaging client for smartphones.
Deal: VeriSign buys Network Deal: VeriSign buys Network Solutions
Rank: 5
Amount: $21 billion
Year: 2002
Security software maker VeriSign acquired the Jacksonville, Florida-based Net name registrar Network Solutions. The Reston, Virginia-based VeriSign alos operates a diverse array of network infrastructure, including two of the Internet's thirteen root nameservers.
Deal: HP buys Compaq
Rank: 6
Amount: $18.6 billion
Year: 2002
The Hewlett-Packard Company (popularly known as HP) is headquartered in Palo Alto, California. It develops and provides a wide range of hardware components as well as software and related services to consumers, small- and medium-sized businesses and large enterprises, including customers in the government, health and education sectors.
Compaq Computer Corporation developed, sold, and supported computers and related products and services.
Deal: HP buys EDS
Rank: 7
Amount: $13.9 billion
Year: 2008
Founded in 1962 by H Ross Perot, Electronic Data Systems was an American multinational information technology equipment and services company headquartered in Plano, Texas.
Deal: Symantec buys Veritas
Rank: 8
Amount: $13.5 billion
Year: 2005
A Fortune 500 company, Symantec headquartered in Mountain View, California produces software for security, storage, backup and availability - and offers professional services to support its software.
Founded in 1983 as Tolerant Systems, Veritas Software Corporation was renamed Veritas Software Corp in 1989, and merged with Symantec in 2005.
Deal: Google buys Motorola Mobility
Rank: 9
Amount: $12.5 billion
Year: 2014
Founded in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin while they were students at Stanford University, Google is an American multinational technology company specialising in Internet-related services and products.
Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Motorola Mobility was formed on January 4, 2011 after splitting Motorola Inc into two separate companies.
Google acquired Motorola Mobility in 2012 and two years later, sold it to Lenovo.
Deal: NXP buys Freescale
Rank: 10
Amount: $11.8 billion
Year: 2015
Founded in 2006, NXP Semiconductors N.V. is a global semiconductor manufacturer headquartered in Eindhoven, The Netherlands.
Freescale was one of the first semiconductor companies in the world, having started as a division of Motorola in Phoenix, Arizona in 1948.
