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http://www.macnn.com/articles/01/09/04/hp.buying/

HP buying Compaq

updated 04:00 am EDT, Tue September 4, 2001

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Hewlett Packard is buying Compaq Computer for $25 billion, potentially creating a company that will rival IBM in terms of sheer size (more than 145,000 employees) and revenue (about $85 billion per year). Sales totals of the merged company would also exceed any other personal computer maker, including Dell. Both companies were mum regarding the potential for further job cuts in the wake of the acquisition.

by MacNN Staff

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09/04, 04:20am | report spam | close Reply | delete
wow!

Well ain't that some s***?

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09/04, 05:18am | report spam | close Reply | delete
Odd

Didn't see that one coming. This at least has some benefit for HP. It isn't like the acquisitions that Neff was suggesting which seemed COMPLETELY POINTLESS. HP, Compaq, and IBM are pretty much the only PC makers with any interesting technology. Interestingly enough, none of this technology is in their PC offerings. For example, look at their interesting RISC CPU and server options. It will be nice that Dell is out of that seat. That guy is such a jerk that I have wanted something to shut him up for a while now.

Anyway, this is interesting and unexpected,
Jeff.

fuzzymac
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09/04, 06:00am | report spam | close Reply |
maybe...

Maybe micro$oft will buy aol/time-warner and then buy hp and then buy amerika and then buy...

hehehe... These mergers are just so silly. A sign of the times, i suppose.

jimothy
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09/04, 07:56am | report spam | close Reply |
re: odd

How can you say HP, Compaq, and IBM are the only PC makers with interesting technology, while Dell is obviously the innovator? I mean, after all, weren't they the first PC maker ever to come out with a wireless-ready notebook? Michael wouldn't lie to us, would he?

Seriously, though, I wonder who will buy "beleaguered box maker" Gateway. Consolidation is necessary in the PC industry. The price war has resulted in low end boxes selling at a loss for these companies (perhaps they fell into the dot-com mentality that profits don't matter, but the industry is waking up from that now).

I expect to see further consolidation in the PC industry, and I expect that we'll see the death of the $600-and-under PC.

\0

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09/04, 08:03am | report spam | close Reply | delete
woah

Waking up to this is a shock. Totally out of the blue. Well good luck to them, hopefully they will: 1) Avoid major layoffs and 2) Help get rid of Dell

TheBettsBoy

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09/04, 08:03am | report spam | close Reply | delete
Yoorah!

I'm proud that compaq eventually failed in profitable. I'm looking forward to hear "(Your Company Name) buying Dell and destroying it" from MacNN soon :)

ihxo
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09/04, 08:12am | report spam | close Reply |
HAHAHA

DELL you are next

\0

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09/04, 08:25am | report spam | close Reply | delete
Two Thoughts

1) If I worked for either company, I'd be very anxious right about now. The merger will undoubtedly follow AOL / Time Warner's business plan. Massive layoffs ahead.

2) Gateway is next. I'm not sure who would buy them, but they've got to go. No way they can sustain themselves.

beno
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09/04, 08:51am | report spam | close Reply |
trouble?

Compaq must be in real trouble if they agree to this. A pure stock deal at a 10:6 ratio is just silly, no cash involved, very little take-over bonus, Compaq shareholders are completely screwed.

But apparently they couldn't wait for the market to rebound, and make this deal under better conditions.

Oh, well, at least Apple gains one spot in the sales rankings :)

kerryb
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09/04, 09:14am | report spam | close Reply |
Two slices of white bread

Great, now we will have yet another mega corporation selling un-interesting products for us not to buy. Bigger is not better especially with technology companies, then again I don't think any of the PC companies really offer NEW technology, if you don't count including a (yawn) faster Itel processor, a bigger hard, and whatever cheap optical drive is available. How is this merger good for anyone? Are the poor folks that buy these crappy machines going to benefit somehow? Will something new and revolutionary come from the merger of these two very similar PC makers. I feel bad for the employees that will get their pink slips soon and all those PC users that suddlenly have one less choice in their beige world.

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09/04, 09:22am | report spam | close Reply | delete
HP to take on Microsoft?

HP is the only Wintel PC box maker to envision the whole picture. From Printers, to cameras, to monitors, to servers, to internet appliances and hand held PDA devices. What would stop them from creating their own OS.

The PC makers have to see that by developing a loyal independent following (i.e. Apple) you can weather the storm better. Why fight the economy and each other over the same piece of a shrinking pie.

HP is currently developing their own version of Linux based upon RedHat but with far greater security. Why not extend that from servers to handhelds and desktop computers.

The only thing stopping them is an alternative to MS Office.

I think we are seeing the beginning of a new future in Personal Computers. A future where third party operating systems are irrelevant.

Just my 2�

SMacSteve
Mac Enthusiast

Joined: Aug 2001

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09/04, 09:38am | report spam | close Reply |
The next merger

The next obvious merger will be Dell buying Gateway. This makes more since than HP and Compaq as Dell needs the retail presence. Watch it'll happen, I'm surprised it hasn't allready happened. Gateway won't last another quarter!

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09/04, 09:39am | report spam | close Reply | delete
3rd Party OS

I think you're absolutely right. And the funny thing is, Gates would probably agree with you. The market won't sustain an closed OS architecture like Windows. It's only a matter of time.

wlonh
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09/04, 10:02am | report spam | close Reply |
BAD DEAL

http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/7/21445.html

Charles A
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09/04, 10:10am | report spam | close Reply |
Dead Windows??

Windows die? Hardly. Too many people use it; and how would Hewlett-Paqard produce an OS on their own which had backwards compatibility with a product that barely has internal compatibility??

As for Dell buying Gateway - why?? What does Gateway have that Dell can't acquire simply by letting G/w slit its own throat? Why buy the boat which is sinking and tie it to your yacht?

But as someone else said - at least it moves Apple up one place in the sales rankings. Unless I'm really misreading this, that is the only effect of this on Apple.

So, new Powerbooks? iBook revamp?

Charles

dbj1000

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09/04, 11:12am | report spam | close Reply | delete
Re: The next merger

"The next obvious merger will be Dell buying Gateway. This makes more since than HP and Compaq as Dell needs the retail presence."

Retail presence is the last thing on earth that Dell needs. Dell's whole (extremely successful) business model is based around holding almost no stock and selling through super-low-overhead channels. Dell may be an Apple user's worst enemy due to Michael Dell's obnoxious anti-Apple rants, but you've got to admit that their business is doing very well indeed.

Despite Apple's move into retail space, having your own shops is generally regarded as a bad move for PC manufacturers. I believe Apple will make a sucess of it by being the Gap of the computer retail world, but it was the retail spaces that helped finish off Gateway.

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09/04, 11:21am | report spam | close Reply | delete
Missed the point ...

I never suggested that Windows would be dead. Good God anyone with half a brain knows that they control too many desktops to simply disappear.

When I spoke earlier of HP developing their own OS I meant that they could make Microsoft irrelevant in their future strategy.

Why use a flawed Windows 2000 IIS when you can develop a more secure inhouse solution. Ultimately providing you with a competitive advantage over a Dell which still relies on MS.

Who cares if your server operating system is compatible with anything outside of Oracle, Novell, and Apachee? I don't know any IT administrator which runs MS software on an NT box (except for Exchange services).

Why couldn't HP replace Windows NT/2000 and Exchange Services with an integrated Linux OS alternative.

Ultimately this solution could migrate to the business desktops and then consumer desktops but not before a strong infrustructure of applications are developed.

Hence HP would need to look at providing solutions such as an; internet browser, email application, word processor, spread sheet, accounting software and then games.

I mean what kind of market share can you expect without a decent game of Solitaire ;o)

ibanez
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09/04, 11:31am | report spam | close Reply |
Hm

Not a bad combo. Compaq is pretty good in the NT space, has the tried and tested OS VMS, and is doing okay in handhelds. HP is good in printers, high-end unix servers, and has better infrastructure products, it's own brand of Unix like COMPAQ, although there products, like the SANs, are just rebadged products from other providers.

There is alot of overlap there however, so you could expect trimming in product lines (an internal memo on theregister.co.uk says 15000 jobs to be cut) so the product of the merger probably won't equal the sum of its parts (but it will be a more profitable enterprise).

IBM shouldn't worry, it's far superior to these two!

As far as Apple goes, well I think if they keep plugging away with some differentiated products and opening up their stores, when the economy rebounds, they'll be better off (with gateway being sick, and HP/COMPAQ worrying about their merger).

I think the best thing that could happen to Apple is for IBM/Motorola to get there act into gear and take Power PC to the next level. Both of these companies have created some fantastic technology in the past few months. Don't license it out guys, put your heads together and take market share off intel ! IBM with "Strained Silicon", SiGe, copper wires; and SOI and Motorola with III-V research, on-die memory controller, and other design breakthroughts; combined with their multi core future processor designs would be amazing! If motorola is selling off its Semiconductor business, I hope it sells it to IBM (and gives it a period of exclusivity on it's III-V IP).

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09/04, 12:48pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Cool, I guess

I've never been a fan of Compaq. In my experience, they've almost always had problems. So I think this is pretty good. I used to work for HP, and I've always liked the company. They offer good, solid products (at least in terms of printers and scanners) and a strong support system. I'm not really saying hooray for them, because I'm not really a fan of x86 stuff. Better than Compaq continuing on through oblivion I guess.

As for HP making their own OS. That's a bad Idea. Period. I'll give you two examples. BeOS and OS/2
Both good, strong, stable systems. Both Dead. Gone. Yeah, they're still around, but they don't have anything holding them up, and no one's producing for them. HP would be throwing away money producing it's own OS.

so umm, yeah. I don't like Dell Either ;)

bryan.falchuk

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09/04, 01:50pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
To Jimothy - Innovation

Jimothy, No, No, No...Dell never innovated. See, innovation is not about repackaging someone else's technology. HP and CPQ have, in fact, developed new technologies, whereas Dell simply packages other tech's. When you speak of bringing out the first wireless laptop, that's not an innovation. They simply pioneered selling wireless laptops. If you recall 802.11b's development, it was a Lucent (Agere Systems) endeavor that was done with some help from Apple.

If you knew anything about Dell, you'd understand that R&D is not in their business plan...they are 100% marketing. And, yes, Michael would lie to you...that's what j******* megalomaniacs do. He's a friggin computer nerd, for Christ sakes...he's been saying Apple would go out of business for years now, and, guess what, his company is losing money right now, and more than Apple lost when it did lose.

berserkintosh
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09/04, 01:53pm | report spam | close Reply |
dell

dell just put five notches in his belt, 2 in the pants and five holes in the wall. this cant be good for "little ol dell"

@yahoo.com

\0

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09/04, 08:43pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Well stop buying!

Don't like DELL?

Stop friggin' well buying its products then.

I've seen so many people in the past here saying they have a DELL alongside their Mac. Why do this? DELL provides nothing that a "white box maker" can't give you.

Don't support a profit-centered greedy corporation like DELL, instead visit a local company shop and give them your business by having them build a system for you.

You'll get exactly what you want and save money.

walter
Registered User

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09/04, 08:53pm | report spam | close Reply |
Who CARES!!!!!!

In typical MacNN fashion, another unrelated Mac/Apple news item that I could've read on another more generic news site if I had really cared to know about it.

walter
Registered User

Joined: Sep 2005

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09/04, 08:54pm | report spam | close Reply |
Who CARES!!!!!!

In typical MacNN fashion, another unrelated Mac/Apple news item that I could've read on another more generic news site if I had really cared to know about it.

Ster

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09/04, 09:24pm | report spam | close Reply | delete
Re: Who CARES!!!!!!

walter:
Were I to guess, I'd say that the 22 people who posted before you cared.
This is important industry news that, while not involving Apple directly, could have huge repercussions in the entire personal computer space. That includes Apple. I certainly care about it, and I'm glad to have the space on the forums to discuss it.
This concerns me on multiple levels. I live in the Houston area, where Compaq is a big employer. I know people who are probably going to get laid off because of this; I feel bad for them. I am also a Computer Science major, so this means that there's going to be a bunch of programmers with more industry experience than me entering my marketspace. Finally, I also work for Apple (just a Campus Representative at the University of Houston; they don't tell us inside stuff), and so I'm curious as to what impact this will have on them.
Just my $0.02.
-Ster

jimothy
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09/04, 10:13pm | report spam | close Reply |
Re: Jimothy

Hey, my comment about Dell and wireless was a joke. Apple was in fact the first to release wireless ready notebooks. I was being sarcastic.

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HP buying Compaq

updated 04:00 am EDT, Tue September 4, 2001

wow!

Odd

maybe...

re: odd

woah

Yoorah!

HAHAHA

Two Thoughts

trouble?

Two slices of white bread

HP to take on Microsoft?

The next merger

3rd Party OS

BAD DEAL

Dead Windows??

Re: The next merger

Missed the point ...

Hm

Cool, I guess

To Jimothy - Innovation

dell

Well stop buying!

Who CARES!!!!!!

Who CARES!!!!!!

Re: Who CARES!!!!!!

Re: Jimothy

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HP buying Compaq

updated 04:00 am EDT, Tue September 4, 2001

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wow!

Odd

maybe...

re: odd

woah

Yoorah!

HAHAHA

Two Thoughts

trouble?

Two slices of white bread

HP to take on Microsoft?

The next merger

3rd Party OS

BAD DEAL

Dead Windows??

Re: The next merger

Missed the point ...

Hm

Cool, I guess

To Jimothy - Innovation

dell

Well stop buying!

Who CARES!!!!!!

Who CARES!!!!!!

Re: Who CARES!!!!!!

Re: Jimothy

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