EMC is reported to be rethinking the structure of its Virtustream acquisition, possibly because the deal's complexity is getting in the way of Dell's own acquisition of EMC.

EMC is considering holding a majority stake in Virtustream, Reuters reported today . The original plan behind the $1.2 billion acquisition was for Virtustream to be a 50-50 joint venture with VMware, which itself is a subsidiary of EMC.

The joint-venture arrangement was announced after Dell struck a $67 billion deal to acquire EMC. And it's reportedly created some friction with shareholders.

Because Dell doesn't have $67 billion lying around, the EMC acquisition has some creative elements. One is a tracking stock for VMware, shares for which would be used to compensate EMC's current shareholders.

But the tracking stock's value will decline if VMware isn't doing so well. Virtustream is likely to lose $200 million to $300 million in 2016, VMware said on a recent earnings call, and that doesn't sit well with the future owners of the tracking stock, as Re/code reported this morning.

By this afternoon, Reuters had reported that EMC was considering a new plan: keeping a majority stake and absorbing Virtustream's losses itself.

EMC and VMware declined to comment on the Reuters and Re/code stories. EMC also declined to comment on this story; VMware did not immediately return a request for comment.