Hitachi Data Systems Ltd has been getting so much coverage for its booming Skyline mainframe and market-leading storage technology businesses you’d be forgiven for thinking that’s all the $2bn unit does. And you’d be almost right, because it doesn’t do an awful lot on its Unix products. However to ready itself for the time when IBM Corp’s CMOS mainframes do eventually surpass Skyline’s performance and its mainframes are not the hottest date in town, HDS is ramping its systems integration and services business to the point where it’ll account for half of its revenue within three years. Of course it’s HDS’ Hitachi Ltd parent that’s looking for increased sales of home electronics products (CI No 3,198). Skyline doesn’t really fit that bill.
