INTEL to buy McAfee for $7.68 Bililon

Intel plans to buy security company McAfee for $7.68 billion--the biggest acquisition in its 42-year history.

The chipmaker said Thursday it has entered into a definitive agreement to buy all of McAfee's common stock at $48 per share in cash. McAfee's stock closed Wednesday at $29.93, making Intel's offer a 60 percent premium.

The boards of both companies have approved the deal.

Security has become an essential element of online computing, on par with energy-efficient performance and connectivity, Intel said. But today's security isn't adequately addressing the array of new Net-connected machines on the market, such as mobile devices, TVs, cars, ATMs, and medical gadgets, according to Intel. Offering protection requires a new approach that can tie together software, hardware, and services, the company said.

"With the rapid expansion of growth across a vast array of Internet-connected devices, more and more of the elements of our lives have moved online," Intel CEO Paul Otellini said in a statement. "In the past, energy-efficient performance and connectivity have defined computing requirements. Looking forward, security will join those as a third pillar of what people demand from all computing experiences."

By integrating McAfee's core technology, Intel asserts that it can improve current products and offer new ones that can better secure both the cloud and devices used by consumers and businesses. Those include traditional computers and embedded products--any device where chips play a prominent role.

"Our view is that everywhere we sell a microprocessor, there is an opportunity to sell security software with it," Otellini said in a conference call.

The chipmaker also sees the acquisition as augmenting its wireless strategy.

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