Technology heavyweights Cisco Systems and EMC Corp dampened speculation the two companies would merge as they announced on Tuesday a broad partnership to develop data centre technology, taking on rivals IBM and Hewlett-Packard. The two have spent three years developing technology and ironing out details of a deep partnership through which they will bundle Cisco’s networking equipment and server computers with EMC’s storage and virtualization technology.
Their goal is to become a top provider of data centre products as the industry switches to technology focused on providing socalled “cloud” computing services from central data centres that can be accessed over the internet and corporate networks.
As they announced that partnership, top executives from both companies suggested that persistent speculation Cisco plans to acquire EMC has been unfounded.EMC chief executive Joe Tucci said in an interview that the rumours may have been sparked as investors got wind of the close talks between the two companies that led to the partnership over the past few years.
Cisco CEO John Chambers said in the same interview, that “Our tendencies are to partner together. I think we do that remarkably well.” When specifically asked if he was interested in buying EMC, as investors have long speculated might be the case, Chambers said: “You buy big-tosmall. You partner big-to-big.”
The Wall Street Journal reported that the partnership will sell and provide maintenance and service support for a product called “V-Block,” combining EMC’s storage equipment, Cisco’s virtualized servers and networking gear and VMWare’s virtualization technology.
The partnership, the paper said, will have two components. It will be responsible for marketing and providing maintenance and support for V-Block. But the actual cloud infrastructure will be constructed by a coalition of the three companies.
The publication noted that technology giants had breached new markets, “turning once stalwart allies into competitors”.
The move by Cisco, EMC and VMWare, it said, comes amid a wave of consolidation among companies that provide hardware, software and services to corporate data centres.“Following the actions of IBM and HP to create one-stop IT shops, Dell announced in September it will purchase IT services firm Perot Systems. Software giant Oracle Corp, meanwhile, is awaiting European antitrust approval for its acquisition of Sun Microsystems,” The Journal said.
Agencies
Showing posts with label HP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label HP. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Will HP merge its PC, print divisions?
Hewlett-Packard Co is considering a plan to reorganize the company and combine its printer and personal computer units, the Wall Street Journal reported.
A plan is being finalized that would put Todd Bradley, who leads HP's PC group, in charge of the combined division, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter.
An HP spokeswoman declined to comment on what she called "rumor and speculation."
PCs made up around 30 percent of HP's revenue in the July quarter, with the printing group accounting for roughly 20 percent.
The printing group boasted an operating margin of 17 percent, making it HP's most profitable division.
For fiscal 2010, HP forecast revenue growth of 3-5 percent in its PC business and zero to 2 percent in its printing group.
HP is the world's No. 1 PC maker, holding a roughly 20 percent share of the global market.
The Journal report said Vyomesh Joshi, a longtime HP veteran who leads the printing division, could potentially leave the company in the coming months.
He has been approached in recent years by other technology companies looking for a new chief executive, the report said, citing people familiar with Joshi's discussions.
Agencies
A plan is being finalized that would put Todd Bradley, who leads HP's PC group, in charge of the combined division, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter.
An HP spokeswoman declined to comment on what she called "rumor and speculation."
PCs made up around 30 percent of HP's revenue in the July quarter, with the printing group accounting for roughly 20 percent.
The printing group boasted an operating margin of 17 percent, making it HP's most profitable division.
For fiscal 2010, HP forecast revenue growth of 3-5 percent in its PC business and zero to 2 percent in its printing group.
HP is the world's No. 1 PC maker, holding a roughly 20 percent share of the global market.
The Journal report said Vyomesh Joshi, a longtime HP veteran who leads the printing division, could potentially leave the company in the coming months.
He has been approached in recent years by other technology companies looking for a new chief executive, the report said, citing people familiar with Joshi's discussions.
Agencies
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Why is Sun Micro losing $100 mn a month?
Oracle Corp Chief Executive Larry Ellison said Sun Microsystems Inc is losing about $100 million a month as European regulators delay approving his company's $7 billion purchase of the struggling hardware maker.
"The longer this takes, the more money Sun is going to lose," Ellison said on Monday evening during a dinner at one of Silicon Valley's most prominent speaker's forums, the Churchill Club.
Sun's revenue has tumbled since April when Oracle agreed to buy the world's No. 4 computer server maker in April as rivals IBM and Hewlett-Packard Co have poached customers amid uncertainty about its future.
Oracle has pledged to boost investment on development of Sun's products, but the hardware company has cut spending prior to the deal's closing as sales have plunged. Last month it reported a quarterly loss of $147 million.
Ellison, the world's fourth-richest man according to Forbes, said he expects the deal will eventually be cleared by European regulators as it was in the United States, without any conditions.
The European Commission is conducting an in-depth probe into whether the competition would be stifled by the combination of Oracle's database, the world's top seller, and Sun's MySQL database, which is widely used to run popular websites.
Legal experts have said Oracle may need to make concessions, including the divestiture of the MySQL software business, and that it is unclear how long European approval would take.
European regulators have until January 19, the deadline set by the Commission, the competition watchdog of the 27-country European Union. That would put Oracle months behind its original plan for closing the deal by the end of August.
Agencies
"The longer this takes, the more money Sun is going to lose," Ellison said on Monday evening during a dinner at one of Silicon Valley's most prominent speaker's forums, the Churchill Club.
Sun's revenue has tumbled since April when Oracle agreed to buy the world's No. 4 computer server maker in April as rivals IBM and Hewlett-Packard Co have poached customers amid uncertainty about its future.
Oracle has pledged to boost investment on development of Sun's products, but the hardware company has cut spending prior to the deal's closing as sales have plunged. Last month it reported a quarterly loss of $147 million.
Ellison, the world's fourth-richest man according to Forbes, said he expects the deal will eventually be cleared by European regulators as it was in the United States, without any conditions.
The European Commission is conducting an in-depth probe into whether the competition would be stifled by the combination of Oracle's database, the world's top seller, and Sun's MySQL database, which is widely used to run popular websites.
Legal experts have said Oracle may need to make concessions, including the divestiture of the MySQL software business, and that it is unclear how long European approval would take.
European regulators have until January 19, the deadline set by the Commission, the competition watchdog of the 27-country European Union. That would put Oracle months behind its original plan for closing the deal by the end of August.
Agencies
Will $3.9b Dell acquisition of Perot Systems payoff?
Dell agreed to buy Perot Systems for $3.9 billion, undertaking its biggest purchase ever to compete with International Business Machines and Hewlett-Packard in computer services. Dell, the second-biggest maker of personal computers, offered $30 a share in cash, about 68% more than Perot’s closing price September 18. The acquisition probably will boost profit in fiscal 2012, Round Rock, Texas-based Dell said in a statement on Monday.
Chief executive officer Michael Dell is pushing into computer services as consumers and companies curb PC purchases to cope with the economic slump. Larger services units helped IBM and Hewlett-Packard withstand the recession better than Dell, whose sales slumped 22% last quarter. The new services business would have annual sales of about $8 billion.
“This significantly expands Dell’s enterprise-solutions capabilities,’’ CEO Dell said in the statement. “The acquisition makes such great sense because of the obvious ways our businesses complement each other.’’
Once the transaction is complete, Perot Systems, based in Plano, Texas, will become Dell’s services unit. The purchase price is more than twice what Dell paid last year for EqualLogic, which was the computer maker’s biggest acquisition until now.
Perot Systems jumped as much as $11.89, or 66%, to $29.80 in trading before US exchanges opened. Dell, which ranks second to Hewlett-Packard in PC sales, fell as much as 5.6% to $15.75.
The acquisition of Perot, founded by former presidential candidate H Ross Perot, mirrors Hewlett-Packard’s purchase of Electronic Data Systems for $13.2 billion last year. EDS, the world’s secondlargest computer services provider after IBM, helped Hewlett-Packard increase services revenue 93% last quarter. Sales in the PC unit fell 18%.
Dell has relied on cost reductions to help prop up profit amid the recession. The company, aiming to save $4 billion a year, has farmed out 40% of manufacturing. Still, profit dropped 23% last quarter. Perot, which sells services to industries including health care, reported an 11% drop in sales and a 3% gain in net income last quarter. The company expects to benefit from the US government’s plans for electronic health records, Peter Altabef, CEO of Perot, said in an April interview. IBM’s sales fell 13% last quarter, while Hewlett-Packard’s total revenue dropped about 2%.
The companies have benefited from long-term services contracts to maintain corporations’ computers and networks. The Perot acquisition, while not subject to a financing condition, will need government approvals and the satisfaction of other conditions, Dell said. Dell to acquire x for $3.9bn.
Agencies
Chief executive officer Michael Dell is pushing into computer services as consumers and companies curb PC purchases to cope with the economic slump. Larger services units helped IBM and Hewlett-Packard withstand the recession better than Dell, whose sales slumped 22% last quarter. The new services business would have annual sales of about $8 billion.
“This significantly expands Dell’s enterprise-solutions capabilities,’’ CEO Dell said in the statement. “The acquisition makes such great sense because of the obvious ways our businesses complement each other.’’
Once the transaction is complete, Perot Systems, based in Plano, Texas, will become Dell’s services unit. The purchase price is more than twice what Dell paid last year for EqualLogic, which was the computer maker’s biggest acquisition until now.
Perot Systems jumped as much as $11.89, or 66%, to $29.80 in trading before US exchanges opened. Dell, which ranks second to Hewlett-Packard in PC sales, fell as much as 5.6% to $15.75.
The acquisition of Perot, founded by former presidential candidate H Ross Perot, mirrors Hewlett-Packard’s purchase of Electronic Data Systems for $13.2 billion last year. EDS, the world’s secondlargest computer services provider after IBM, helped Hewlett-Packard increase services revenue 93% last quarter. Sales in the PC unit fell 18%.
Dell has relied on cost reductions to help prop up profit amid the recession. The company, aiming to save $4 billion a year, has farmed out 40% of manufacturing. Still, profit dropped 23% last quarter. Perot, which sells services to industries including health care, reported an 11% drop in sales and a 3% gain in net income last quarter. The company expects to benefit from the US government’s plans for electronic health records, Peter Altabef, CEO of Perot, said in an April interview. IBM’s sales fell 13% last quarter, while Hewlett-Packard’s total revenue dropped about 2%.
The companies have benefited from long-term services contracts to maintain corporations’ computers and networks. The Perot acquisition, while not subject to a financing condition, will need government approvals and the satisfaction of other conditions, Dell said. Dell to acquire x for $3.9bn.
Agencies
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Has Oracle ended its HP computer tie-up?
Oracle Corp has ended a high-profile computer-building partnership with Hewlett-Packard Co as Oracle prepares to acquire Sun Microsystems Inc, a rival of HP.
Sun, the world's No. 4 server maker, and Oracle have jointly developed a second-generation version of a specialized database computer, dubbed Exadata. Oracle and HP launched the first version a year ago.
Oracle Chief Executive Larry Ellison unveiled the new machine on Tuesday, almost a year after he announced his company's entry into the hardware business with help from HP. At the time, he said that HP would be a key ally in that effort.
But the dynamics of that relationship have changed since April, when Oracle agreed to buy Sun for more than $7 billion. Hewlett-Packard and Sun are fierce rivals in the markets for server computers and storage equipment.
The new Exadata computer is the first of what Ellison has said will be many products that wed Sun's hardware with Oracle's software.
An Oracle spokeswoman said Oracle would continue to sell the Exadata computers, built in partnership with HP, until existing inventory is sold out, if customers request that model.
Officials at Hewlett-Packard could not be reached for comment.
When Ellison unveiled the HP partnership a year ago, he told customers that the product could not have been developed without that company's assistance.
On Tuesday he bragged that Sun's technology made the database computer far superior to hardware from rivals including Teradata Corp and Netezza Corp.
"Everything is bigger about Exadata, Version 2. Everything is faster about Exadata, Version 2," he said during a presentation to customers that was broadcast over the Internet.
Oracle does not break out sales of the Exadata machine. But during the company's most recent earnings call, Ellison said that it was one of the most successful products he had launched since he founded the company more than 30 years ago.
Agencies
Sun, the world's No. 4 server maker, and Oracle have jointly developed a second-generation version of a specialized database computer, dubbed Exadata. Oracle and HP launched the first version a year ago.
Oracle Chief Executive Larry Ellison unveiled the new machine on Tuesday, almost a year after he announced his company's entry into the hardware business with help from HP. At the time, he said that HP would be a key ally in that effort.
But the dynamics of that relationship have changed since April, when Oracle agreed to buy Sun for more than $7 billion. Hewlett-Packard and Sun are fierce rivals in the markets for server computers and storage equipment.
The new Exadata computer is the first of what Ellison has said will be many products that wed Sun's hardware with Oracle's software.
An Oracle spokeswoman said Oracle would continue to sell the Exadata computers, built in partnership with HP, until existing inventory is sold out, if customers request that model.
Officials at Hewlett-Packard could not be reached for comment.
When Ellison unveiled the HP partnership a year ago, he told customers that the product could not have been developed without that company's assistance.
On Tuesday he bragged that Sun's technology made the database computer far superior to hardware from rivals including Teradata Corp and Netezza Corp.
"Everything is bigger about Exadata, Version 2. Everything is faster about Exadata, Version 2," he said during a presentation to customers that was broadcast over the Internet.
Oracle does not break out sales of the Exadata machine. But during the company's most recent earnings call, Ellison said that it was one of the most successful products he had launched since he founded the company more than 30 years ago.
Agencies
Friday, September 11, 2009
Will MindTree foray into China shortly?
Mid-sized software services firm MindTree will be making foray into China, having bagged a significant outsourcing contract from China’s biggest telecommunications equipment maker Huawei Technologies.
For the Bangalore-headquartered company, China marks new geography entry, besides already having presence in US and Europe. Confirming the development , Parthasarathy N S, CEO, testing & IMTS, MindTree, said, “We will be doing independent testing in the telecom space. This project has different phases and has potential to become large. The contract also allows us to move up the value chain as China has emerged a big growth market”.
However, he declined to name the customer as he is not allowed to do so. The contract deals with R&D and involves managing and supporting independent testing for Huawei’s different product line, where employees of MindTree will do the work at customer location, a person privy to the development said.
“Four companies were bidding for the contract, including an Indian firm and it was given to MindTree after complete evaluation of capabilities ”, the person said on conditions of anonymity. The company, which counts steel-maker Arcelor Mittal, Swedish truckmaker Volvo and insurer AIG among its top customers, will now be opening a subsidiary in China. Mr Parthasarathy said that they have sent techies from its India centres to China and will also look at option of hiring local talent there.
“China is an important market and we are evaluating to set up a development centre, but nothing will be decided till 12-18 months,” said Parthasarathy.
Economic Times
For the Bangalore-headquartered company, China marks new geography entry, besides already having presence in US and Europe. Confirming the development , Parthasarathy N S, CEO, testing & IMTS, MindTree, said, “We will be doing independent testing in the telecom space. This project has different phases and has potential to become large. The contract also allows us to move up the value chain as China has emerged a big growth market”.
However, he declined to name the customer as he is not allowed to do so. The contract deals with R&D and involves managing and supporting independent testing for Huawei’s different product line, where employees of MindTree will do the work at customer location, a person privy to the development said.
“Four companies were bidding for the contract, including an Indian firm and it was given to MindTree after complete evaluation of capabilities ”, the person said on conditions of anonymity. The company, which counts steel-maker Arcelor Mittal, Swedish truckmaker Volvo and insurer AIG among its top customers, will now be opening a subsidiary in China. Mr Parthasarathy said that they have sent techies from its India centres to China and will also look at option of hiring local talent there.
“China is an important market and we are evaluating to set up a development centre, but nothing will be decided till 12-18 months,” said Parthasarathy.
Economic Times
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
New Booklet 3G from Nokia to take on Apple, Dell
Nokia started as a computer company in 1980's but sold the business in 1991 to focus on mobile phones. Now after two decades Nokia is all set to launch its booklet called "Booklet 3G" to broaden its product range to survive the tough competition in the declining mobile market.
Nokia is facing tough competition in the mobile market as many new players are now entering in the scene. Dell, Acer and Hewlett Packard (HP) are all interested to launch products in the mobile category. There are many speculations that Apple will soon be launching a tablet-type touch screen by next year. Nokia plans to take on these competitors in their own backyard with the launch of its Booklet 3G.
This booklet will mostly be mistaken for a netbook but it focuses on on-the-go networking. It is powered by a Windows operating system (not clear yet if it is Windows 7) and has a 10-inch color screen. It has both 3G and GPS functionality, as well as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi when there's a network available. It will also have access to Nokia Music store and Ovi maps. Nokia claims that the Booklet will run for 12 hours on a battery charge.
"A growing number of people want the computing power of a PC with the full benefits of mobility. Nokia has a long and rich heritage in mobility, and with the outstanding battery life, premium design and all-day, always-on connectivity, we will create something quite compelling," said Kai Oistamo, Nokia's Executive Vice-President for devices to Telegraph.
Nokia will mostly give further details about pricing early next month at Nokia World '09 in Stuttgart. It is expected that the booklet will be expensive and will be in the range of $700 to $1000.
Agencies
Nokia is facing tough competition in the mobile market as many new players are now entering in the scene. Dell, Acer and Hewlett Packard (HP) are all interested to launch products in the mobile category. There are many speculations that Apple will soon be launching a tablet-type touch screen by next year. Nokia plans to take on these competitors in their own backyard with the launch of its Booklet 3G.
This booklet will mostly be mistaken for a netbook but it focuses on on-the-go networking. It is powered by a Windows operating system (not clear yet if it is Windows 7) and has a 10-inch color screen. It has both 3G and GPS functionality, as well as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi when there's a network available. It will also have access to Nokia Music store and Ovi maps. Nokia claims that the Booklet will run for 12 hours on a battery charge.
"A growing number of people want the computing power of a PC with the full benefits of mobility. Nokia has a long and rich heritage in mobility, and with the outstanding battery life, premium design and all-day, always-on connectivity, we will create something quite compelling," said Kai Oistamo, Nokia's Executive Vice-President for devices to Telegraph.
Nokia will mostly give further details about pricing early next month at Nokia World '09 in Stuttgart. It is expected that the booklet will be expensive and will be in the range of $700 to $1000.
Agencies
New tablet may replace keyboard with touch-screen
Apple is shrinking its Mac computer and bringing out a tablet that is small enough to be carried in a handbag but big enough for comfortable web surfing, newspaper reading and watching movies. The computer will revolutionize laptops as we know them because it is one flat touch-screen device without a keyboard.
Speculations have reached a feverish pitch that by 2010, the revolutionary touch-screen gadget will be in a store near you. Blogs are alive with rumours that the tablet’s launch will be announced in September by Steve Jobs, Apple founder and CEO, and launched in time for the Christmas market, reports the Telegraph.
The product is believed to have been in development for the past six years, with Jobs personally involved over the last two. If the speculation is true, it could be the next technological breakthrough for Apple, which has sold more than 200 million iPods since its launch in 2001. The tablet will be billed as the solution for people who work a lot on the move, but don’t want to be burdened with a laptop.
Pundits are predicting that our lives will never be the same. “People expect it to be the ultimate Apple surprise. This thing will knock people’s socks off,”Leander Kahney, a blogger and author of The Cult of Mac, told the Observer.
“Apple will totally rejig the computing experience. You won’t manipulate a keyboard and mouse any more but rather use an intuitive touch-screen. It will very tactile. It will be a whole new paradigm.”
Gene Munster, a technology research analyst, estimated that the tablet, with an onscreen keyboard like the iPhone, would cost around $600, putting it between the high-end iPod Touch at $399 and the Mac-Book, which starts at $999.
Agencies
Speculations have reached a feverish pitch that by 2010, the revolutionary touch-screen gadget will be in a store near you. Blogs are alive with rumours that the tablet’s launch will be announced in September by Steve Jobs, Apple founder and CEO, and launched in time for the Christmas market, reports the Telegraph.
The product is believed to have been in development for the past six years, with Jobs personally involved over the last two. If the speculation is true, it could be the next technological breakthrough for Apple, which has sold more than 200 million iPods since its launch in 2001. The tablet will be billed as the solution for people who work a lot on the move, but don’t want to be burdened with a laptop.
Pundits are predicting that our lives will never be the same. “People expect it to be the ultimate Apple surprise. This thing will knock people’s socks off,”Leander Kahney, a blogger and author of The Cult of Mac, told the Observer.
“Apple will totally rejig the computing experience. You won’t manipulate a keyboard and mouse any more but rather use an intuitive touch-screen. It will very tactile. It will be a whole new paradigm.”
Gene Munster, a technology research analyst, estimated that the tablet, with an onscreen keyboard like the iPhone, would cost around $600, putting it between the high-end iPod Touch at $399 and the Mac-Book, which starts at $999.
Agencies
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Analytics company SPSS Inc to be acquired by IBM
IBM plans to buy technology services company SPSS Inc for about $1.2 billion in cash, the companies said on Tuesday.
SPSS shareholders will receive $50 a share, a 42% premium to Monday's closing price of $35.09 on Nasdaq.
Chicago-based SPSS provides predictive analytics software and services. Predictive analytics are used by companies to forecast future trends and spot shifts in consumer patterns, helping them control costs and use resources more wisely.
IBM said the deal will help expand its Information on Demand software portfolio and business analytics capabilities.
Shares of SPSS jumped 41 per cent in premarket trade to about $49.50. The shares had already enjoyed a gain of about 30 per cent this year.
The deal values SPSS at about 25 times analysts' estimated 2010 earnings per share, and the $50 per share price represents an all-time high for the stock, topping its previous all-time top of $47.87.
The deal is subject to SPSS shareholder approval and regulatory clearances, and is expected to close later in the second half of 2009, the companies said.
Separately, IBM said it has acquired closely-held Ounce Labs Inc, whose software helps companies reduce the risks and costs associated with security and compliance concerns. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Back in May, IBM's chief financial officer, Mark Loughridge, told the Reuters Technology Summit that the valuations of potential acquisition targets were attractive. IBM has spent $20 billion buying more than 100 companies since 2000, paying prices that range from as little as $50 million to as much as $5 billion.
Agencies
SPSS shareholders will receive $50 a share, a 42% premium to Monday's closing price of $35.09 on Nasdaq.
Chicago-based SPSS provides predictive analytics software and services. Predictive analytics are used by companies to forecast future trends and spot shifts in consumer patterns, helping them control costs and use resources more wisely.
IBM said the deal will help expand its Information on Demand software portfolio and business analytics capabilities.
Shares of SPSS jumped 41 per cent in premarket trade to about $49.50. The shares had already enjoyed a gain of about 30 per cent this year.
The deal values SPSS at about 25 times analysts' estimated 2010 earnings per share, and the $50 per share price represents an all-time high for the stock, topping its previous all-time top of $47.87.
The deal is subject to SPSS shareholder approval and regulatory clearances, and is expected to close later in the second half of 2009, the companies said.
Separately, IBM said it has acquired closely-held Ounce Labs Inc, whose software helps companies reduce the risks and costs associated with security and compliance concerns. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Back in May, IBM's chief financial officer, Mark Loughridge, told the Reuters Technology Summit that the valuations of potential acquisition targets were attractive. IBM has spent $20 billion buying more than 100 companies since 2000, paying prices that range from as little as $50 million to as much as $5 billion.
Agencies
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Will Hewlett-Packard buy Ibrix?
Hewlett-Packard announced that it will acquire Ibrix, a maker of enterprise-scale file serving software.
Large companies running huge data-heavy applications often bump into bottlenecks with both storage and performance. HP says that Ibrix's software is designed to help such customers manage and store massive amounts of data, scaling to tens of petabytes. (A petabyte is 1,000 terabytes.)
HP wants Ibrix to help strengthen its share of the burgeoning market for high-performance enterprise data storage, cloud storage, and file archiving. HP says this segment is growing 20 percent a year, faster than the markets for network-attached storage (NAS) and external storage.
"Customers need highly scalable storage solutions that efficiently and cost-effectively manage massive amounts of information," said Jeff Hausman, vice president of Unified Storage in HP's StorageWorks division. "This acquisition expands our portfolio to better support the needs of this market segment."
Started in 2000, Ibrix is a privately held company in Massachusetts with 53 employees and more than 175 enterprise customers.
"Joining forces with HP is a natural fit for our customers, resulting in an enhanced storage solution that scales to meet their data growth," said Milan Shetti, chief executive officer of Ibrix. "The unique combination of Ibrix's file-serving solutions with HP's portfolio of products and services enables customers to lower the cost of scale-out architectures while easing the process of storing, accessing and moving critical data."
HP expects the deal to be completed in the next 30 days, after which Ibrix will become part of the StorageWorks division in HP's Technology Solutions Group.
CNet.com
Large companies running huge data-heavy applications often bump into bottlenecks with both storage and performance. HP says that Ibrix's software is designed to help such customers manage and store massive amounts of data, scaling to tens of petabytes. (A petabyte is 1,000 terabytes.)
HP wants Ibrix to help strengthen its share of the burgeoning market for high-performance enterprise data storage, cloud storage, and file archiving. HP says this segment is growing 20 percent a year, faster than the markets for network-attached storage (NAS) and external storage.
"Customers need highly scalable storage solutions that efficiently and cost-effectively manage massive amounts of information," said Jeff Hausman, vice president of Unified Storage in HP's StorageWorks division. "This acquisition expands our portfolio to better support the needs of this market segment."
Started in 2000, Ibrix is a privately held company in Massachusetts with 53 employees and more than 175 enterprise customers.
"Joining forces with HP is a natural fit for our customers, resulting in an enhanced storage solution that scales to meet their data growth," said Milan Shetti, chief executive officer of Ibrix. "The unique combination of Ibrix's file-serving solutions with HP's portfolio of products and services enables customers to lower the cost of scale-out architectures while easing the process of storing, accessing and moving critical data."
HP expects the deal to be completed in the next 30 days, after which Ibrix will become part of the StorageWorks division in HP's Technology Solutions Group.
CNet.com
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Will Google-Microsoft war cut down PC prices?
Google Inc's bid to compete with Microsoft Corp's Windows operating system may help lower the cost of personal computers at a time when prices are already being pinched by inexpensive netbooks.
Google said it will offer its just-announced Chrome operating system for free when it is launched in the second half of 2010, a move that could force Microsoft into a price war.
Although Windows is the dominant operating system -- installed on 90 percent of the world's PCs, Microsoft won't take Google's challenge lightly, analysts said. Its new Windows 7 operating system will be available in October.
"Microsoft's strategy is likely to be to compete on price," said Brent Williams, an analyst with the Benchmark Co. "Now there's a competitor with the muscle and the brand recognition. Google is that company."
Google said Chrome OS, which is based on the open-source Linux code, is being designed for all PCs but will debut on netbooks. It makes sense for Google to initially target the stripped-down, Web-centric netbooks, one of the only segments showing any growth in a PC market that is contracting.
Netbooks generally sell for $300 to $400, but prices are dropping as new offerings flood the market and wireless carriers offer subsidies with the purchase of a data plan.
Kaufman Bros analyst Shaw Wu noted that while the prices on nearly all PC components have been falling, "the one thing that has not been coming down is the cost of the operating system. This is going to put some pressure on Microsoft."
Microsoft doesn't say how much it charges PC brands for Windows, but analysts estimate it gets $20 to $40 for the older XP system used in the vast majority of netbooks, and at least $150 for the current Vista system.
Wu said price competition could ultimately give a bump to PC makers' margins.
"I think overall it should improve the profitability for PC vendors. It's really a question of how much they pass on to the customers," he said.
REWRITING THE RULES
Between 20 million and 30 million netbooks are expected to be shipped this year, and the devices continue to rewrite the rules for the PC industry.
Even as heavyweights such as Hewlett-Packard Co and Dell Inc roll out new netbooks, analysts expect new players, including Taiwan-based equipment manufacturers and carriers such as AT&T Inc, to release branded netbooks running on either Intel Corp's x86 chip platform or ARM chips.
Google said Chrome will work on either architecture.
Agencies
Google said it will offer its just-announced Chrome operating system for free when it is launched in the second half of 2010, a move that could force Microsoft into a price war.
Although Windows is the dominant operating system -- installed on 90 percent of the world's PCs, Microsoft won't take Google's challenge lightly, analysts said. Its new Windows 7 operating system will be available in October.
"Microsoft's strategy is likely to be to compete on price," said Brent Williams, an analyst with the Benchmark Co. "Now there's a competitor with the muscle and the brand recognition. Google is that company."
Google said Chrome OS, which is based on the open-source Linux code, is being designed for all PCs but will debut on netbooks. It makes sense for Google to initially target the stripped-down, Web-centric netbooks, one of the only segments showing any growth in a PC market that is contracting.
Netbooks generally sell for $300 to $400, but prices are dropping as new offerings flood the market and wireless carriers offer subsidies with the purchase of a data plan.
Kaufman Bros analyst Shaw Wu noted that while the prices on nearly all PC components have been falling, "the one thing that has not been coming down is the cost of the operating system. This is going to put some pressure on Microsoft."
Microsoft doesn't say how much it charges PC brands for Windows, but analysts estimate it gets $20 to $40 for the older XP system used in the vast majority of netbooks, and at least $150 for the current Vista system.
Wu said price competition could ultimately give a bump to PC makers' margins.
"I think overall it should improve the profitability for PC vendors. It's really a question of how much they pass on to the customers," he said.
REWRITING THE RULES
Between 20 million and 30 million netbooks are expected to be shipped this year, and the devices continue to rewrite the rules for the PC industry.
Even as heavyweights such as Hewlett-Packard Co and Dell Inc roll out new netbooks, analysts expect new players, including Taiwan-based equipment manufacturers and carriers such as AT&T Inc, to release branded netbooks running on either Intel Corp's x86 chip platform or ARM chips.
Google said Chrome will work on either architecture.
Agencies
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Intel & Nokia to jointly work on mobile devices
Intel Corp announced a technology partnership with Nokia that could potentially give the chip maker the breakthrough it as been looking for into the mobile market.
The companies said on Tuesday they would work together on a new class of mobile computing devices, but would not say when they would come to market or give details on the kind of wireless products they hoped to develop together.
Analysts saw the pact as strategically important for Intel in the long term because it gains the world's top cellphone maker as a potential client. But given the lack of details, analysts said it could take one or two years for products to come to market, and it remained to be seen if they would find favor with consumers,
"Intel at least has its foot in the door. It's an important and strategic customer," said Gartner analyst Jon Erensen, who sees the partnership as a way for Intel to get into the market for advanced phones known as smartphones.
However, he added, "You're probably talking about something like 2011 before you get down to the power consumption and integration (levels) you'd need for that kind of device."
Analysts said the deal gives Intel a chance to take on leading cellphone chip makers Qualcomm Inc and Texas Instruments Inc, a big Nokia supplier.
It could also mean stiffer competition for ARM Holdings Plc, which supplies core cellphone processors to both Texas Instruments and Qualcomm, and whose customers rely in part on software from Wind River Systems Inc.
Intel said earlier this month that it would buy Wind River, whose software speeds up and connects devices made by Samsung Electronics, Apple Inc, Hewlett-Packard Co and Motorola Inc.
Intel, whose microprocessors are found in eight out of 10 personal computers, already works with LG Electronics on mobile devices. The agreement with Finland's Nokia, the world's largest cellphone maker, is a bigger step.
Intel Chief Executive Paul Otellini has said that the handheld, embedded and netbook markets would be as important for the company as the PC market in the near future.
NEW MOBILE PLATFORM
Under the agreement, Intel will buy intellectual property from Nokia related to high-speed wireless technology. They also plan to collaborate on open-source mobile Linux software projects, which some analysts say will compete with Google's Android software in the netbook and mobile Internet device (MID) market.
Intel and Nokia said they aimed to define "a new mobile platform beyond today's smartphones, notebooks and netbooks" for hardware, software and mobile Internet services. They stressed the pact was about their technology collaboration and not about specific products.
Until the companies give more detail about their plans, the news is unlikely to provide much of a boost to share prices, analysts said.
Intel's shares rose 0.83 per cent to $15.81 while Nokia shares fell 0.78 per cent to 10.21 euros.
Intel already sells Atom chips for netbooks - small, no-frills computers
good for Web surfing - and Nokia has said it would look into the possibly of expanding beyond phones to develop netbooks.
The pact may help Nokia compete with rivals such as iPhone from Apple Inc and BlackBerry from Research In Motion, as well as Pre from Palm Inc.
J. Gold Associates analyst Jack Gold wrote in a research note that he expects the first Nokia-Intel devices to be Atom-based and to hit the market in early to mid 2010. Within two to three years, Intel could ship tens of millions of units annually, he said.
Gold wrote on Tuesday that he expects to see Intel enter into more deals and alliances in new markets.
Agencies
The companies said on Tuesday they would work together on a new class of mobile computing devices, but would not say when they would come to market or give details on the kind of wireless products they hoped to develop together.
Analysts saw the pact as strategically important for Intel in the long term because it gains the world's top cellphone maker as a potential client. But given the lack of details, analysts said it could take one or two years for products to come to market, and it remained to be seen if they would find favor with consumers,
"Intel at least has its foot in the door. It's an important and strategic customer," said Gartner analyst Jon Erensen, who sees the partnership as a way for Intel to get into the market for advanced phones known as smartphones.
However, he added, "You're probably talking about something like 2011 before you get down to the power consumption and integration (levels) you'd need for that kind of device."
Analysts said the deal gives Intel a chance to take on leading cellphone chip makers Qualcomm Inc and Texas Instruments Inc, a big Nokia supplier.
It could also mean stiffer competition for ARM Holdings Plc, which supplies core cellphone processors to both Texas Instruments and Qualcomm, and whose customers rely in part on software from Wind River Systems Inc.
Intel said earlier this month that it would buy Wind River, whose software speeds up and connects devices made by Samsung Electronics, Apple Inc, Hewlett-Packard Co and Motorola Inc.
Intel, whose microprocessors are found in eight out of 10 personal computers, already works with LG Electronics on mobile devices. The agreement with Finland's Nokia, the world's largest cellphone maker, is a bigger step.
Intel Chief Executive Paul Otellini has said that the handheld, embedded and netbook markets would be as important for the company as the PC market in the near future.
NEW MOBILE PLATFORM
Under the agreement, Intel will buy intellectual property from Nokia related to high-speed wireless technology. They also plan to collaborate on open-source mobile Linux software projects, which some analysts say will compete with Google's Android software in the netbook and mobile Internet device (MID) market.
Intel and Nokia said they aimed to define "a new mobile platform beyond today's smartphones, notebooks and netbooks" for hardware, software and mobile Internet services. They stressed the pact was about their technology collaboration and not about specific products.
Until the companies give more detail about their plans, the news is unlikely to provide much of a boost to share prices, analysts said.
Intel's shares rose 0.83 per cent to $15.81 while Nokia shares fell 0.78 per cent to 10.21 euros.
Intel already sells Atom chips for netbooks - small, no-frills computers
good for Web surfing - and Nokia has said it would look into the possibly of expanding beyond phones to develop netbooks.
The pact may help Nokia compete with rivals such as iPhone from Apple Inc and BlackBerry from Research In Motion, as well as Pre from Palm Inc.
J. Gold Associates analyst Jack Gold wrote in a research note that he expects the first Nokia-Intel devices to be Atom-based and to hit the market in early to mid 2010. Within two to three years, Intel could ship tens of millions of units annually, he said.
Gold wrote on Tuesday that he expects to see Intel enter into more deals and alliances in new markets.
Agencies
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Has HP retained No 1 position in the Indian PC market?
Hewlett-Packard (HP) improved its market share in the first quarter to continue its lead in the India PC personal computer (PC) space, according to technology research firm IDC.
HP captured 18.2% of the India PC market in terms of unit shipments in the January-March period, an IDC India report said. The PC maker had a 15.6% share in the previous (October-December) quarter. HP has been numero uno in the India PC market consistently every quarter over the past four years. With a market share of 9.8% in overall PC shipments, HCL Infosystems regained the second spot, after losing out to Dell in the October-December quarter. Dell slipped back to the third spot with a share of 9.7% in the first quarter this year, IDC said in a release.
The India PC market witnessed a 7% quarter-on-quarter growth in shipments in Q1 of 2009. A total of 16.79 lakh units of desktops and laptops were shipped during the January-March quarter of 2009.
Desktop PC shipments of 12.13 lakh registered a sequential growth of 9%, while laptop shipments of 4.66 lakh units grew 3% QoQ.
The research firm said the market share, over the next two quarters, would depend on how well PC vendors capitalise on opportunities in the consumer, education and government segments in India.
In Q1 2009, fourth-placed Acer’s market share dipped marginally to 7.3%. Fifth-ranked Lenovo showed a more pronounced drop — its share came down to 4.7% in Q1 2009 from 6.6% in the previous quarter.
“Moving forward, hardware in general, and PC shipments in particular, will continue to remain under pressure. Winners would gain market share and improve profitability through the right price/volume mix and optimal exploitation of supply chain efficiencies,” IDC India country manager Kapil Dev Singh said.
Economictimes
HP captured 18.2% of the India PC market in terms of unit shipments in the January-March period, an IDC India report said. The PC maker had a 15.6% share in the previous (October-December) quarter. HP has been numero uno in the India PC market consistently every quarter over the past four years. With a market share of 9.8% in overall PC shipments, HCL Infosystems regained the second spot, after losing out to Dell in the October-December quarter. Dell slipped back to the third spot with a share of 9.7% in the first quarter this year, IDC said in a release.
The India PC market witnessed a 7% quarter-on-quarter growth in shipments in Q1 of 2009. A total of 16.79 lakh units of desktops and laptops were shipped during the January-March quarter of 2009.
Desktop PC shipments of 12.13 lakh registered a sequential growth of 9%, while laptop shipments of 4.66 lakh units grew 3% QoQ.
The research firm said the market share, over the next two quarters, would depend on how well PC vendors capitalise on opportunities in the consumer, education and government segments in India.
In Q1 2009, fourth-placed Acer’s market share dipped marginally to 7.3%. Fifth-ranked Lenovo showed a more pronounced drop — its share came down to 4.7% in Q1 2009 from 6.6% in the previous quarter.
“Moving forward, hardware in general, and PC shipments in particular, will continue to remain under pressure. Winners would gain market share and improve profitability through the right price/volume mix and optimal exploitation of supply chain efficiencies,” IDC India country manager Kapil Dev Singh said.
Economictimes
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Will Larry Ellison foray into netbook market?
Oracle Corp Chief Executive Larry Ellison is considering getting into the business of selling low-cost laptop computers, one of the fastest-growing sectors of the technology business.
Ellison said on Tuesday that he is looking at entering the market for so-called netbook computers after his software company completes its planned $7 billion purchase of computer maker Sun Microsystems Inc.
Sun also controls the Java computer language, which Ellison told programmers at a Java users' conference could be employed to run netbooks.
"I don't see why some of those devices shouldn't come from Sun," said Ellison, who runs the world's third-largest software maker. "There will be computers that are fundamentally based on Java."
That would put Oracle in competition with companies like Google Inc, Hewlett-Packard Co, Dell Inc and Acer Inc, which either make netbooks or develop software for them.
The netbook phenomenon took off in 2008 to the tune of 11.7 million units, led by companies such as Acer and Asustek Computer Inc that were quick into the market. Nearly every PC vendor offers them these days.
Analysts forecast 20 million to 30 million netbooks will be sold this year, making up an ever larger part of overall laptop sales and marking one of few tech sectors still experiencing robust revenue growth.
Ellison made the comments during his first public speech since Oracle announced plans to buy Sun.
Although netbooks are relatively new, Ellison deserves some credit for their rise.
More then a decade ago he introduced a lightweight alternative to the PC known as the Network Computer, which was built primarily to connect to the Internet. The machines, which competed with ones running on Microsoft Corp's Windows operating system, failed to take off after their launch in 1996.
Agencies
Ellison said on Tuesday that he is looking at entering the market for so-called netbook computers after his software company completes its planned $7 billion purchase of computer maker Sun Microsystems Inc.
Sun also controls the Java computer language, which Ellison told programmers at a Java users' conference could be employed to run netbooks.
"I don't see why some of those devices shouldn't come from Sun," said Ellison, who runs the world's third-largest software maker. "There will be computers that are fundamentally based on Java."
That would put Oracle in competition with companies like Google Inc, Hewlett-Packard Co, Dell Inc and Acer Inc, which either make netbooks or develop software for them.
The netbook phenomenon took off in 2008 to the tune of 11.7 million units, led by companies such as Acer and Asustek Computer Inc that were quick into the market. Nearly every PC vendor offers them these days.
Analysts forecast 20 million to 30 million netbooks will be sold this year, making up an ever larger part of overall laptop sales and marking one of few tech sectors still experiencing robust revenue growth.
Ellison made the comments during his first public speech since Oracle announced plans to buy Sun.
Although netbooks are relatively new, Ellison deserves some credit for their rise.
More then a decade ago he introduced a lightweight alternative to the PC known as the Network Computer, which was built primarily to connect to the Internet. The machines, which competed with ones running on Microsoft Corp's Windows operating system, failed to take off after their launch in 1996.
Agencies
Friday, May 22, 2009
Is HP set to layoff 6,400 employees in 2010?
US computer giant Hewlett-Packard reported a 17-per cent fall in quarterly net profit and said it plans to cut two per cent of its workforce, or nearly 6,400 workers, over the next year.
HP said net profit fell to $1.7 billion, or 86 cents per share, in the second quarter of its fiscal year from $2.1 billion, or 87 cents per share, a year ago, in line with the expectations of Wall Street analysts.
The Palo Alto, California-based company, the world's largest manufacturer of personal computers, said revenue was down three per cent in the quarter which ended on April 30 to $27.4 billion.
Chief financial officer Cathy Lesjak announced the planned layoffs in a conference call with analysts after the release of the results.
“We will be taking some targeted action to structurally change and improve the effectiveness of our product businesses,” she said.
“These actions will result in the elimination of approximately two per cent of the HP workforce as we further streamline and simplify our organization and supply chain. These actions will be implemented over the next 12 months.”
The only bright spot for HP in the quarter was in its services business, which notched up an operating profit of $1.17 billion in the quarter due to its purchase last year of EDS. “Our services business continued to deliver strong profitability with an increased deal pipeline and the EDS integration tracking ahead of schedule,” said HP chairman and chief executive Mark Hurd.
HP said revenue from its enterprise storage and servers division fell 28 per cent to $3.5 billion while software revenue declined 15 per cent to $880 million. Computer shipments were flat in a “challenging environment” and the division saw revenue fall 19 per cent to $8.2 billion. Revenue from laptop computers was down 13 per cent while desktop computer revenue fell 24 per cent.
Operating profit for the division fell to $374 million from $544 million a year ago. The imaging and printing group saw revenue decline by 23 per cent to $5.9 billion and operating profit fall to $1.1 billion from $1.2 billion a year earlier.
HP said revenue grew nine per cent in the Americas to $12.1 billion and declined by 11 per cent in Europe, the Middle East and Africa to $10.6 billion. Revenue fell 10 per cent in Asia Pacific to $4.7 billion.
HP said it expects third quarter revenue to be flat and full fiscal year revenue to decline by four per cent to five per cent with full-year earnings per share of between $3.76 to $3.88.
Agencies
HP said net profit fell to $1.7 billion, or 86 cents per share, in the second quarter of its fiscal year from $2.1 billion, or 87 cents per share, a year ago, in line with the expectations of Wall Street analysts.
The Palo Alto, California-based company, the world's largest manufacturer of personal computers, said revenue was down three per cent in the quarter which ended on April 30 to $27.4 billion.
Chief financial officer Cathy Lesjak announced the planned layoffs in a conference call with analysts after the release of the results.
“We will be taking some targeted action to structurally change and improve the effectiveness of our product businesses,” she said.
“These actions will result in the elimination of approximately two per cent of the HP workforce as we further streamline and simplify our organization and supply chain. These actions will be implemented over the next 12 months.”
The only bright spot for HP in the quarter was in its services business, which notched up an operating profit of $1.17 billion in the quarter due to its purchase last year of EDS. “Our services business continued to deliver strong profitability with an increased deal pipeline and the EDS integration tracking ahead of schedule,” said HP chairman and chief executive Mark Hurd.
HP said revenue from its enterprise storage and servers division fell 28 per cent to $3.5 billion while software revenue declined 15 per cent to $880 million. Computer shipments were flat in a “challenging environment” and the division saw revenue fall 19 per cent to $8.2 billion. Revenue from laptop computers was down 13 per cent while desktop computer revenue fell 24 per cent.
Operating profit for the division fell to $374 million from $544 million a year ago. The imaging and printing group saw revenue decline by 23 per cent to $5.9 billion and operating profit fall to $1.1 billion from $1.2 billion a year earlier.
HP said revenue grew nine per cent in the Americas to $12.1 billion and declined by 11 per cent in Europe, the Middle East and Africa to $10.6 billion. Revenue fell 10 per cent in Asia Pacific to $4.7 billion.
HP said it expects third quarter revenue to be flat and full fiscal year revenue to decline by four per cent to five per cent with full-year earnings per share of between $3.76 to $3.88.
Agencies
AT&T outlets to sell netbooks across USA
AT&T Inc plans to expand sales of netbook computers to all its stores in an effort to expand wireless services beyond cell
phones.
Ralph de la Vega, the head of AT&T's consumer business, said on Tuesday that the US phone company would directly sell netbooks from Dell Inc, Acer Inc and Lenovo Group Ltd starting this summer.
Until now, only AT&T stores in Atlanta and Philadelphia, and consumer electronics retailers RadioShack Corp and Costco, have been selling the netbooks, which come with AT&T mobile data connections.
"We're taking broadband and really making it mobile," de la Vega said at the Reuters Global Technology Summit in New York.
While sales of netbooks are expected to be boosted by promotions from carriers, some analysts have said that consumer enthusiasm could be muted by the requirement to sign up for two-year wireless service contracts and the $60-a-month data connection fees that come with the devices.
AT&T said in April it was testing a $40-per-month fee for 200 megabytes of data downloads to netbooks, or about 1/25th of the downloads allowed under the $60 service.
AT&T's bigger mobile rival Verizon Wireless, a venture of Verizon Communications Inc and Vodafone Group Plc, started selling netbook computers from Hewlett-Packard Co earlier this week.
Agencies
phones.
Ralph de la Vega, the head of AT&T's consumer business, said on Tuesday that the US phone company would directly sell netbooks from Dell Inc, Acer Inc and Lenovo Group Ltd starting this summer.
Until now, only AT&T stores in Atlanta and Philadelphia, and consumer electronics retailers RadioShack Corp and Costco, have been selling the netbooks, which come with AT&T mobile data connections.
"We're taking broadband and really making it mobile," de la Vega said at the Reuters Global Technology Summit in New York.
While sales of netbooks are expected to be boosted by promotions from carriers, some analysts have said that consumer enthusiasm could be muted by the requirement to sign up for two-year wireless service contracts and the $60-a-month data connection fees that come with the devices.
AT&T said in April it was testing a $40-per-month fee for 200 megabytes of data downloads to netbooks, or about 1/25th of the downloads allowed under the $60 service.
AT&T's bigger mobile rival Verizon Wireless, a venture of Verizon Communications Inc and Vodafone Group Plc, started selling netbook computers from Hewlett-Packard Co earlier this week.
Agencies
Friday, May 8, 2009
Oracle won't divest Sun's hardware business, assures Ellison
Oracle Corp Chief Executive Larry Ellison said he won't sell off Sun Microsystems Inc's hardware business, dispelling speculation that he only wanted the company for its software units.
Ellison shook up Silicon Valley last month by sealing a more than $7 billion deal to buy Sun, the world's No 4 maker of server computers and also the developer of Java and Solaris software. Oracle unexpectedly swooped in after Sun's talks with International Business Machines Corp broke apart.
"We are definitely not going to exit the hardware business," Ellison said in an email interview with Reuters. "If a company designs both hardware and software, it can build much better systems than if they only design the software. That's why Apple's iPhone is so much better than Microsoft phones."
His comments fly in the face of the belief of some analysts that Oracle, the world's largest database software maker, may divest Sun's server business and retain just its software assets, such as Java and Solaris.
Oracle's steadily rising profit margins have impressed Wall Street in recent years, and analysts say it is a risky move for it to buy Sun, which has lost $2 billion in the first three quarters of its current fiscal year.
Ellison declined to respond to a question on what he would do if efforts to turn around Sun's computer server business run into trouble. Sun's losses have piled up after losing market share to IBM as well as Hewlett-Packard Co.
His comments may reassure businesses that were hesitant to buy Sun hardware due to uncertainty over its future, said Charles King, an analyst with Pund-IT Research.
"There has been some speculation that Oracle is going to auction off Sun by bits and pieces to the highest bidder," King said. "You end up with customers, many of whom own millions or tens of millions of dollars of Sun hardware, looking for another vendor to deal with."
INVESTING IN SPARC CHIPS
Ellison said he plans to boost investment in Sun's SPARC microprocessors, which serve as the brains in its line of high-end Unix computers. The biggest buyers of these servers are large corporations and government agencies.
He believes that by jointly developing Oracle's existing arsenal of software with Sun's computers and SPARC chips, they can build machines designed for specific purposes that work better than ones pulled together from separate components.
Oracle has sought to do this in the past through partnerships with hardware makers, including HP.
"Once we own Sun, we'll be able to plan and synchronize new features from silicon to software, just like IBM and the other big system suppliers," Ellison said in the interview.
Oracle plans to work with Japan's Fujitsu Ltd, which helps Sun design its SPARC microprocessors, to add new features that will improve the performance of Oracle's database software when used on Sun's servers. That will make Sun hardware more competitive versus rival products from IBM than it is today, the CEO added.
The acquisition makes Oracle the world's fourth-largest maker of servers, and puts the software maker into the No. 2 slot in the high end of the server market, which was worth about $17 billion last year.
STORAGE
Ellison also said he intends to hold on to Sun's data storage business and its tape backup unit, which compete with EMC Corp and IBM.
"Sun was very successful for a very long time selling computer systems based on the SPARC chip and the Solaris operating system," he said. "Now, with the added power of integrated Oracle software, we think they can be again."
Sun rose to prominence in the 1990s but never fully recovered from the dot-com bubble burst in the early 2000s, when demand for its high-end servers cratered.
Laura DiDio, an analyst with ITIC, said Oracle may be able to help Sun recapture the cache it once claimed as one of the world's most-respected technology companies.
"Sun has three decades and billions of dollars in investment in superlative hardware. They have some brilliant engineers," she said. "But Sun's marketing has not matched its technology. Larry Ellison is brilliant at marketing."
Agencies
Ellison shook up Silicon Valley last month by sealing a more than $7 billion deal to buy Sun, the world's No 4 maker of server computers and also the developer of Java and Solaris software. Oracle unexpectedly swooped in after Sun's talks with International Business Machines Corp broke apart.
"We are definitely not going to exit the hardware business," Ellison said in an email interview with Reuters. "If a company designs both hardware and software, it can build much better systems than if they only design the software. That's why Apple's iPhone is so much better than Microsoft phones."
His comments fly in the face of the belief of some analysts that Oracle, the world's largest database software maker, may divest Sun's server business and retain just its software assets, such as Java and Solaris.
Oracle's steadily rising profit margins have impressed Wall Street in recent years, and analysts say it is a risky move for it to buy Sun, which has lost $2 billion in the first three quarters of its current fiscal year.
Ellison declined to respond to a question on what he would do if efforts to turn around Sun's computer server business run into trouble. Sun's losses have piled up after losing market share to IBM as well as Hewlett-Packard Co.
His comments may reassure businesses that were hesitant to buy Sun hardware due to uncertainty over its future, said Charles King, an analyst with Pund-IT Research.
"There has been some speculation that Oracle is going to auction off Sun by bits and pieces to the highest bidder," King said. "You end up with customers, many of whom own millions or tens of millions of dollars of Sun hardware, looking for another vendor to deal with."
INVESTING IN SPARC CHIPS
Ellison said he plans to boost investment in Sun's SPARC microprocessors, which serve as the brains in its line of high-end Unix computers. The biggest buyers of these servers are large corporations and government agencies.
He believes that by jointly developing Oracle's existing arsenal of software with Sun's computers and SPARC chips, they can build machines designed for specific purposes that work better than ones pulled together from separate components.
Oracle has sought to do this in the past through partnerships with hardware makers, including HP.
"Once we own Sun, we'll be able to plan and synchronize new features from silicon to software, just like IBM and the other big system suppliers," Ellison said in the interview.
Oracle plans to work with Japan's Fujitsu Ltd, which helps Sun design its SPARC microprocessors, to add new features that will improve the performance of Oracle's database software when used on Sun's servers. That will make Sun hardware more competitive versus rival products from IBM than it is today, the CEO added.
The acquisition makes Oracle the world's fourth-largest maker of servers, and puts the software maker into the No. 2 slot in the high end of the server market, which was worth about $17 billion last year.
STORAGE
Ellison also said he intends to hold on to Sun's data storage business and its tape backup unit, which compete with EMC Corp and IBM.
"Sun was very successful for a very long time selling computer systems based on the SPARC chip and the Solaris operating system," he said. "Now, with the added power of integrated Oracle software, we think they can be again."
Sun rose to prominence in the 1990s but never fully recovered from the dot-com bubble burst in the early 2000s, when demand for its high-end servers cratered.
Laura DiDio, an analyst with ITIC, said Oracle may be able to help Sun recapture the cache it once claimed as one of the world's most-respected technology companies.
"Sun has three decades and billions of dollars in investment in superlative hardware. They have some brilliant engineers," she said. "But Sun's marketing has not matched its technology. Larry Ellison is brilliant at marketing."
Agencies
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Have computer sales dipped by 12%; As cos cut IT spends
Personal computer (PC) sales in India fell about 11.7% during the first quarter of the calendar year to about 2.1 million units as enterprises slowed down IT spending, according to research firm Gartner.
Both desktop PC and laptop sales declined about 11% during the period, as both large enterprises and small and medium businesses delayed their IT hardware purchases.
“Cost pressure seems to have kept away enterprises from spending on IT hardware during the first quarter of 2009, while there are signs of some turnaround in the consumer sentiment,” Gartner principal analyst Diptarup Chakraborti said.
Hewlett-Packard continued to lead India’s PC market, selling about 300,000 PCs in the quarter. The PC maker, however, saw an year-on-year decline in both desktop and laptop sales during the period. HCL Infosystems (200,000) and Dell (158,000) were ranked second and third, respectively. Acer was ranked fourth.
Gartner said it expects PC sales in India to decline 3.7% year-on-year to 8.98 million units this year. The firm had projected sales of 11 million units for the calendar year in the beginning of January, but the first quarter made it revise its projection downwards.
“Production of desktops and laptops has come to near a halt in manufacturing destinations such as Taiwan,” Mr Chakraborti said. PC makers say they saw some growth in new categories, such as netbooks and higher retail sales, in the first quarter but the good news is limited to the consumer space.
“Large enterprises and small and medium businesses are not buying. The e-government projects are also in a limbo with the Model Code of Conduct in place,” Acer India chief marketing officer S Rajendran said.
With the slowdown in enterprise spending, corporate buyers are expected to account for 69% of total PC sales in 2009, down from 71% last year.
The economic slowdown has resulted in a slump in PC sales across the globe. Worldwide PC shipments declined 6.5% in the first quarter of 2009 to 67.2 million units. As per Gartner, the decline could have been steeper but for low-priced laptops such as netbooks.
Agencies
Both desktop PC and laptop sales declined about 11% during the period, as both large enterprises and small and medium businesses delayed their IT hardware purchases.
“Cost pressure seems to have kept away enterprises from spending on IT hardware during the first quarter of 2009, while there are signs of some turnaround in the consumer sentiment,” Gartner principal analyst Diptarup Chakraborti said.
Hewlett-Packard continued to lead India’s PC market, selling about 300,000 PCs in the quarter. The PC maker, however, saw an year-on-year decline in both desktop and laptop sales during the period. HCL Infosystems (200,000) and Dell (158,000) were ranked second and third, respectively. Acer was ranked fourth.
Gartner said it expects PC sales in India to decline 3.7% year-on-year to 8.98 million units this year. The firm had projected sales of 11 million units for the calendar year in the beginning of January, but the first quarter made it revise its projection downwards.
“Production of desktops and laptops has come to near a halt in manufacturing destinations such as Taiwan,” Mr Chakraborti said. PC makers say they saw some growth in new categories, such as netbooks and higher retail sales, in the first quarter but the good news is limited to the consumer space.
“Large enterprises and small and medium businesses are not buying. The e-government projects are also in a limbo with the Model Code of Conduct in place,” Acer India chief marketing officer S Rajendran said.
With the slowdown in enterprise spending, corporate buyers are expected to account for 69% of total PC sales in 2009, down from 71% last year.
The economic slowdown has resulted in a slump in PC sales across the globe. Worldwide PC shipments declined 6.5% in the first quarter of 2009 to 67.2 million units. As per Gartner, the decline could have been steeper but for low-priced laptops such as netbooks.
Agencies
Monday, April 27, 2009
A new class of PC Netbooks 2.0 on the way
A new class of cheaper, smaller netbook computers might upset the IT establishment this year and potentially usher in new players in a hotly competitive market.
The biggest change in the new pint-sized laptops is what they won't have: Intel Corp chips or a Microsoft Corp Windows PC operating system, which dominate netbooks today.
The new netbooks, which use less energy, will run on the low-power ARM processor platform now used in nine out of 10 mobile phones, rather than Intel's x86-based Atom chip. The UK-based ARM Holdings Plc licenses the chip technology.
As many as 10 ARM-based netbook models could hit the market this year, according to ARM, which declined to identify specific manufacturers. Major PC players and Asian contract manufacturers alike are interested, analysts say.
Enderle Group analyst Rob Enderle called the new netbooks "incredibly disruptive," saying: "This is a market that puts the existing PC structure at risk."
While analysts say it's not yet clear if consumers will embrace the ARM devices, interest has been galvanized by the emphasis on power efficiency, prices as low as $200 and the promise of anywhere, anytime computing on PCs small enough to slip into a purse.
What's sacrificed is users' familiarity with PC-based interfaces and systems and sheer processing power. The current $300-$400 Atom netbooks are already mainly good for just surfing the Web and less graphics-intensive applications.
"We're right in the middle of a huge shift in the market," said Eric Openshaw, U.S. technology leader for Deloitte LLP.
Openshaw said non-Windows netbooks will need to demonstrate a simple and accessible user interface at the application level if they hope to gain traction with consumers.
Windows XP can't run on ARM, so the new netbooks will have Linux-based software, including, analysts and industry executives say, Google Inc Android, which has been used so far in smartphones.
But don't count Microsoft out just yet. Although the software giant declined to comment when asked if it is planning an operating system for the new netbooks, analysts say it could easily enter the market if it chose.
Intel pointed out there are as yet no ARM netbooks on the market and that its Atom chip has a full year's head start.
"We're not slowing down, we fully expect competition and we continue to believe that Atom is the right choice for our customers and consumer," said spokesman Bill Calder.
NEXT WAVE
The still-evolving netbook market is growing thick with players from all over the tech sector. Wireless carriers such as AT&T Inc are helping lead the charge, while graphics chipmaker Nvidia Corp, wireless chipmaker Qualcomm Inc and Freescale Semiconductor Inc have all designed ARM-based processors that can be used in netbooks.
The netbook phenomenon took off in 2008 to the tune of 11.7 million units, led by companies such as Acer Inc and Asustek Computer Inc that were quick into the market. Nearly every PC vendor offers an Intel Atom-based netbook, including Hewlett-Packard Co and Dell Inc.
Analysts forecast 20 million to 30 million netbooks will be sold this year, making up an ever larger part of overall laptop sales and marking one of few tech sectors still experiencing robust revenue growth.
"It's definitely going to be a different sort of device than today's netbooks," said Phil Solis of ABI Research, who expects ARM netbooks to make up 15 percent of the overall netbook market in 2010.
IDC analyst Richard Shim said the first wave of netbooks brought a PC feel to bridge the gap between laptops and smartphones. ARM netbooks, he said, represent a push from the opposite direction.
"The smartphones are now moving up," he added.
It is widely expected that the Computex trade fair in Taiwan in June will see a number of announcements about ARM-based netbooks. With less expensive ARM chips and free or very cheap operating systems, the netbooks could sell for even less than $200 if, as expected, wireless carriers subsidize purchases bundled with a data plan.
Tech blogs were recently buzzing about a prototype netbook built by Taiwan contract laptop maker Wistron Corp shown at the recent CTIA show in Las Vegas. The device was based on Qualcomm's ARM-based Snapdragon platform.
Agencies
Netbooks 2.0, PC,cheaper, smaller,computers,IT,laptops,Intel,Microsoft,ARM,analysts,technology,Nvidia, Qualcomm,Freescale,Asustek,HP, Dell,IDC,
The biggest change in the new pint-sized laptops is what they won't have: Intel Corp chips or a Microsoft Corp Windows PC operating system, which dominate netbooks today.
The new netbooks, which use less energy, will run on the low-power ARM processor platform now used in nine out of 10 mobile phones, rather than Intel's x86-based Atom chip. The UK-based ARM Holdings Plc licenses the chip technology.
As many as 10 ARM-based netbook models could hit the market this year, according to ARM, which declined to identify specific manufacturers. Major PC players and Asian contract manufacturers alike are interested, analysts say.
Enderle Group analyst Rob Enderle called the new netbooks "incredibly disruptive," saying: "This is a market that puts the existing PC structure at risk."
While analysts say it's not yet clear if consumers will embrace the ARM devices, interest has been galvanized by the emphasis on power efficiency, prices as low as $200 and the promise of anywhere, anytime computing on PCs small enough to slip into a purse.
What's sacrificed is users' familiarity with PC-based interfaces and systems and sheer processing power. The current $300-$400 Atom netbooks are already mainly good for just surfing the Web and less graphics-intensive applications.
"We're right in the middle of a huge shift in the market," said Eric Openshaw, U.S. technology leader for Deloitte LLP.
Openshaw said non-Windows netbooks will need to demonstrate a simple and accessible user interface at the application level if they hope to gain traction with consumers.
Windows XP can't run on ARM, so the new netbooks will have Linux-based software, including, analysts and industry executives say, Google Inc Android, which has been used so far in smartphones.
But don't count Microsoft out just yet. Although the software giant declined to comment when asked if it is planning an operating system for the new netbooks, analysts say it could easily enter the market if it chose.
Intel pointed out there are as yet no ARM netbooks on the market and that its Atom chip has a full year's head start.
"We're not slowing down, we fully expect competition and we continue to believe that Atom is the right choice for our customers and consumer," said spokesman Bill Calder.
NEXT WAVE
The still-evolving netbook market is growing thick with players from all over the tech sector. Wireless carriers such as AT&T Inc are helping lead the charge, while graphics chipmaker Nvidia Corp, wireless chipmaker Qualcomm Inc and Freescale Semiconductor Inc have all designed ARM-based processors that can be used in netbooks.
The netbook phenomenon took off in 2008 to the tune of 11.7 million units, led by companies such as Acer Inc and Asustek Computer Inc that were quick into the market. Nearly every PC vendor offers an Intel Atom-based netbook, including Hewlett-Packard Co and Dell Inc.
Analysts forecast 20 million to 30 million netbooks will be sold this year, making up an ever larger part of overall laptop sales and marking one of few tech sectors still experiencing robust revenue growth.
"It's definitely going to be a different sort of device than today's netbooks," said Phil Solis of ABI Research, who expects ARM netbooks to make up 15 percent of the overall netbook market in 2010.
IDC analyst Richard Shim said the first wave of netbooks brought a PC feel to bridge the gap between laptops and smartphones. ARM netbooks, he said, represent a push from the opposite direction.
"The smartphones are now moving up," he added.
It is widely expected that the Computex trade fair in Taiwan in June will see a number of announcements about ARM-based netbooks. With less expensive ARM chips and free or very cheap operating systems, the netbooks could sell for even less than $200 if, as expected, wireless carriers subsidize purchases bundled with a data plan.
Tech blogs were recently buzzing about a prototype netbook built by Taiwan contract laptop maker Wistron Corp shown at the recent CTIA show in Las Vegas. The device was based on Qualcomm's ARM-based Snapdragon platform.
Agencies
Netbooks 2.0, PC,cheaper, smaller,computers,IT,laptops,Intel,Microsoft,ARM,analysts,technology,Nvidia, Qualcomm,Freescale,Asustek,HP, Dell,IDC,
Sunday, April 26, 2009
SAP Unviels Co-Innovation Lab in Bangalore
SAP AG formally launched its Co-Innovation Lab in Bangalore, the third such lab in the world by the company. The lab that started its operation in October last year, joins the league of similar labs in Palo Alto and Tokyo. "The main goal of this lab is to create a platform for collaboration between SAP and its customers and partners on solutions to different challenges in the industry", said Satyajit Singh Mecker, Senior Vice President, Global Ecosystem and Partner Group.
The SAP Co-Innovation Lab hosts a simulated heterogeneous datacenter, integrating hardware and software from SAP and other participating sponsors. "This lab is not like a R&D lab, but it is a real lab, where partners and customers can solve their problems by collaboration", said Satyajit.
Wipro Technologies, a SAP partner, was one of the first to benefit from this SAP initiative. An Insurance Claims Analytics solution was developed by Wipro by working on a platform that was developed in the SAP Co-Innovation Lab. Some of the other partners associated with the lab include Cisco, HP and Intel.
SAP India that now has over 3,800 customers with 2,900 SMEs in the list, wants to tap the potential in the Indian market by this collaborative effort. "India, especially Bangalore has been a region that has seen explosive growth and the global meltdown has not diminished its stature in the global market", said Dr. Axel Henning Saleck, Vice President and Head of the Global SAP Co-Innovation Labs.
"In 2006, SAP had announced a total investment of one billion dollar in India over 5 years and establishment of this lab is part of the investment", said Satyajit. According to Satyajit, the company sees tremendous potential in the Indian market in segments like information technology, engineering, construction, chemicals and automotive. "The current challenge that we see in India is to maintain a balance between customers and partners and keep the focus right", added Satyajit.
Agencies
The SAP Co-Innovation Lab hosts a simulated heterogeneous datacenter, integrating hardware and software from SAP and other participating sponsors. "This lab is not like a R&D lab, but it is a real lab, where partners and customers can solve their problems by collaboration", said Satyajit.
Wipro Technologies, a SAP partner, was one of the first to benefit from this SAP initiative. An Insurance Claims Analytics solution was developed by Wipro by working on a platform that was developed in the SAP Co-Innovation Lab. Some of the other partners associated with the lab include Cisco, HP and Intel.
SAP India that now has over 3,800 customers with 2,900 SMEs in the list, wants to tap the potential in the Indian market by this collaborative effort. "India, especially Bangalore has been a region that has seen explosive growth and the global meltdown has not diminished its stature in the global market", said Dr. Axel Henning Saleck, Vice President and Head of the Global SAP Co-Innovation Labs.
"In 2006, SAP had announced a total investment of one billion dollar in India over 5 years and establishment of this lab is part of the investment", said Satyajit. According to Satyajit, the company sees tremendous potential in the Indian market in segments like information technology, engineering, construction, chemicals and automotive. "The current challenge that we see in India is to maintain a balance between customers and partners and keep the focus right", added Satyajit.
Agencies
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