Symantec to Split in Two: Security and Information Mgt

Symantec announced a plan to split into two, independent publicly traded companies: one business focused on security and one business focused on information management (“IM”).

The security business, which will retain the Symantec name, generated revenue of $4.2 billion in fiscal year 2014 -- twice the size of the nearest competitor, according to the company. Product lines include consumer and enterprise endpoint security; endpoint management; encryption; mobile; Secure Socket Layer (“SSL”) Certificates; user authentication; mail, web and data center security; data loss prevention; hosted security; and managed security services. Michael A. Brown will be the President and CEO of Symantec and Thomas Seifert will continue to serve as CFO.

The IM business generated revenue of $2.5 billion in fiscal year 2014. The Information Management business will include: backup and recovery; archiving; eDiscovery; storage management; and information availability solutions.  This division will also look at new opportunities, such as integration with cloud providers that enable customers to help manage data across public and private clouds, such as cloud connectors for NetBackup and Recovery-as-a-Service (RaaS) for Azure Cloud.  John Gannon will be General Manager of the new information management business and Don Rath will be its acting CFO.

“As the security and storage industries continue to change at an accelerating pace, Symantec’s security and IM businesses each face unique market opportunities and challenges. It has become clear that winning in both security and information management requires distinct strategies, focused investments and go-to market innovation,” said Michael A. Brown, Symantec president and chief executive officer. “Separating Symantec into two, independent publicly traded companies will provide each business the flexibility and focus to drive growth and enhance shareholder value.”