Xerox Corp. will split itself in two and give several board seats to activist investor Carl Icahn, reversing an effort by the century-old company to marry business services with its copiers and printers.

Xerox will divide into two publicly traded companies: one containing its office machines and another housing its services operations, according to people familiar with the matter. The company is expected to make the announcement Friday when it is forecast to report a fourth straight year of declining profits and sales.

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