Householder said BlueArc's NAS gateway systems are already tightly integrated with Hitachi's enterprise-class storage controller, allowing file-based data to be served from HDS storage arrays.

Householder said sales of HDS's file and content products, which include the BlueArc systems, have been growing faster than HDS's overall growth rate.

"At the end of the day, unlike a car that's a depreciating asset, (BlueArc) is an appreciating asset, and one that we consider will continue to have value over time. If you look at it in term of things two and three years out as to what we can do together, this is one that made sense for us to own," he said.

In a statement, HDS pointed to booming growth in file-based storage systems. "That area, as well as our software and virtualization, has been key areas to our growth," Householder said.

Without giving specifics, Household said HDS is looking to even more tightly integrate BlueArc's technology.