HP To Acquire Palm For USD 1.2 Billion

HP and Palm, Inc. have announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which HP will purchase Palm at a price of $5.70 per share of Palm common stock in cash or an enterprise value of approximately $1.2 billion. The HP and Palm boards of directors have approved the transaction.

“Palm’s innovative operating system provides an ideal platform to expand HP’s mobility strategy and create a unique HP experience spanning multiple mobile connected devices,” said Todd Bradley, Eecutive Vce Pesident, Personal Systems Group, HP. “And, Palm possesses significant IP assets and has a highly skilled team. The smartphone market is large, profitable and rapidly growing, and companies that can provide an integrated device and experience command a higher share. Advances in mobility are offering significant opportunities, and HP intends to be a leader in this market.”

“We’re thrilled by HP’s vote of confidence in Palm’s technological leadership, which delivered Palm webOS and iconic products such as the Palm Pre. HP’s longstanding culture of innovation, scale and global operating resources make it the perfect partner to rapidly accelerate the growth of webOS,” said Jon Rubinstein, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Palm. “We look forward to working with HP to continue to deliver industry-leading mobile experiences to our customers and business partners.”

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Under the terms of the merger agreement, Palm stockholders will receive $5.70 in cash for each share of Palm common stock that they hold at the closing of the merger. The merger consideration takes into account the updated guidance and other financial information being released by Palm this afternoon. The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of domestic and foreign regulatory approvals and the approval of Palm’s stockholders. The transaction is expected to close during HP’s third fiscal quarter ending July 31, 2010.

Palm’s current chairman and CEO, Jon Rubinstein, is expected to remain with the company.

Acer To Sell New Smartphones After HP-Palm Deal (Reuters)

Acer Inc plans to introduce four new smartphone models later this year to help boost profits, a day after rival HP set its sights in the fast-growing smartphone market.

As the global economy shows more signs of recovery, Acer also said on Thursday it expects new laptop PCs to drive its profit margins higher after posting a 62 percent rise in first-quarter earnings.

“Competitive advantage of new products can help us boost profitability from the third quarter,” Acer Chairman J.T. Wang told an investor conference even though smartphones make up only a very small amount of Acer’s sales now.

Analysts say Asian technology firms vying for a bigger share of the hot smartphone market now face an uphill battle after the world’s top PC maker Hewlett-Packard snapped up Palm.