Dell on Thursday said it welcomed Carl Icahn, who has built up a 100 million share stake in the company, and other interested parties as the computer maker seeks to go private.
The special committee appointed by the board said it was conducting a "robust go-shop process" and was looking at other alternatives after a $24.4 billion buyout led by founder Michael Dell faced opposition from some shareholders.
On Wednesday, CNBC reported that Carl Icahn had built up a 6 percent stake in Dell and wanted the company to conduct a leveraged recapitalization.
"Evercore Partners, an independent financial advisor to the Special Committee, is actively soliciting third parties to determine their potential interest and is incentivized to find a superior proposal if one exists," the special committee said in a statement.
"The process will run through March 22, 2013, after which negotiations will continue if a potentially superior proposal emerges. Our goal is to secure the best result for Dell's public shareholders — whether that is the announced transaction or an alternative."
Icahn has asked Dell to pay a one-time dividend of $9 a share instead of the $13.65 a share offer from Michael Dell and the private equity firm Silver Lake Partners.
Dell shares closed at $14.32 on Wednesday and were up 0.2 percent in pre-market trade on Thursday. (Click here to get the latest quote.)