Monday, November 17, 2008

EMC launches new data security firm, Decho

By Mass High Tech Staff

Enterprise software giant EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC) has spun off recent acquisitions Mozy Inc. and Pi Corp. into a new personal data security company to be called Decho Corp. The company will be a wholly owned subsidiary of Hopkinton-based EMC, officials said.

EMC purchased the Mozy subscription backup service last October from Utah-based Berkeley Data Systems Inc. The deal was reported to be worth $76 million.

In February, EMC bought Pi Corp., a Seattle-based maker of personal information management software. Financial transaction details were unavailable at the time.

In spite of record revenue, EMC’s third-quarter reports showed net income had dropped when compared to the same quarter in 2007. EMC’s net income fell from $492.9 million, or 23 cents per share, in the third quarter of 2007, to $411.3 million, or 20 cents a share, in the third quarter of 2008.

Using the Mozy brand name, Decho will provide cloud-based personal information management that will back up important data, protect sensitive data and allow individuals to control their “digital echo,” according to EMC.

“Big, successful companies tend to have to morph everything to their franchise,” said Decho’s Charles Fitzgerald, who previously served as general manager of Microsoft’s platform strategy group, in an interview with the Puget Sound Business Journal’s TechFlash. “God knows how many times I’ve seen that at Microsoft.”

Decho is employing more than 100 people, boasting revenue in the tens of millions and is already storing 10 petabytes of data on behalf of some 900,000 users, the Seattle area’s TechFlash reported. The company is also looking to expand its staffing.

The new company will be based in Seattle, Wash.