Intel’s business vision behind its €5,965 million purchase of McAfee

Editor’s note: This article was first published in August 2010 as news of Intel’s agreed purchase of McAfee at $48 a share; the deal figures are as announced then, and McAfee was spun off again in 2017.

The microprocessor giant Intel has bought the software maker McAfee, an antivirus that, following Intel’s purchase for €5,965 million, is already considered the most expensive antivirus in the world. Why buy the maker of McAfee?

Behind this purchase lies a business vision that will not take long to recover the capital invested in the acquisition.

If we open up our personal computer, we are very likely to find the Intel processor brand inside, since 80% of computers carry this processor, and Intel is, as of today, the world’s largest microchip maker.

With this purchase, Intel intends that every time it sells a microprocessor, it will be sold together with its new security software, which makes it a great opportunity to combine “hardware” and “software” in the same product.

Intel will pay $48 for each McAfee share, acquiring 100% of its shares and therefore making the company entirely its own.

Intel has spotted this business opportunity on the basis that, as the years go by, our online shopping will keep growing, so computer security and the protection of our computers will become basic needs.

Featured image: Thomy pc at German Wikipedia, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.