IBM sells weather business to Francisco Partners

International Business Machine Corp. will sell its weather business to Francisco Partners, which will operate it as a stand-alone company.

“With increased investment and resources from Francisco Partners, The Weather Company will strive to go beyond forecasting alone and provide users with new tools and experiences to help them understand how weather affects every aspect of their lives, from health and wellness.” companies said in a statement.

IBM has been considering selling the business since at least April. The division was acquired in a deal announced in 2015 that included the Weather Channel and Weather Underground apps and websites as part of an effort to expand its presence in the then-hot IoT market.

Since then, IBM has been looking to refocus on cloud computing and has sold its aging infrastructure division to Kyndryl Inc. Last year, she transferred part of her Watson Health business to Francisco Partners for more than $1 billion.