Based in Palo Alto , California , VMware specialises in the development and application of virtualisation technologies with x86 server-based computing , separating application software from the underlying hardware , according to Forbes . The company reported a net revenue of $ 7.09bn in 2017 , representing an increase in sales

of over $ 0.3bn year-over-year . Last month , Dell CEO , Michael Dell , confirmed rumours that the sales company is in negotiations to merge with VMware later this year .

San Francisco-based company Salesforce . com inc . reported a net revenue of $ 8.39bn in 2017 . This represents a more than $ 1.5bn growth in sales year-over-year , with the company also experiencing a return to profit ($ 179.6mn ) after a five-year period of net losses . Salesforce . com specialises in customer relation

management , providing services ranging from sales force automation , customer service and support , and marketing automation , to digital commerce , community management , analytics , application development , IoT integration , collaborative productivity tools and professional cloud services . 60 April 2018