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Though HP likely will be a more imposing force in technology services, it may lack the heft to tackle the types of complex projects that IBM regularly handles, even after the deal closes, said Yankee Group analyst Zeus Kerravala.

But EDS' emphasis on more lucrative projects, such as helping companies develop software applications, will likely help HP, which so far has focused on hardware maintenance.

EDS has been considered "technology agnostic," meaning it doesn't favor particular vendors when it recommends computer gear and software to customers.

If EDS starts to favor HP computers and software under its new ownership, that could deal a blow to Sun Microsystems, said Forrester Research analyst Christine Ferrusi Ross. That's because EDS buys a lot of Sun equipment to power the data centers that it runs for its customers.

Trying to keep talent

As in most technology acquisitions, HP's biggest challenge as it tried to absorb EDS will likely be retaining top talent and minimizing other disruptions.

Services companies are particularly tricky to integrate because they tend to develop quirky cultures. IBM, for instance, needed several years to absorb its $4 billion acquisition of PricewaterhouseCoopers' consulting arm in 2002.

And HP's acquisition of Houston-based Compaq was partially undermined by the cultural clashes that flared between employees in Silicon Valley and Texas. Because EDS also is based in Texas, some of the same cultural hurdles may arise, analyst Kerravala said.

Founded in 1962 by former IBM salesman -- and later two-time presidential candidate -- H. Ross Perot, EDS caused headaches for a previous acquirer, General Motors, which paid $2.5 billion in 1984. Perot became so disillusioned with how that deal worked out that he sold his remaining EDS shares to the automaker so he could start a new rival bearing his name.

GM spun off EDS as an independent company in 1996 and remained its largest customer.

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