🚀 go-pugleaf

Here  I  state  some  news from the Reuters information terminal we have at
work that might be interesting for the Amiga/ShapeShifter folks :



SAN  FRANCISCO,  Jan 28 (Reuter) - Talks between Apple Computer Inc and Sun
Microsystems  Inc  about  a  merger  appear  to be breaking down as the two
companies  cannot  agree  Sun's  most  recent  offer, which is around $23 a
share, they said.

Apple  is  believed  to  be  looking hard for another suitor, while Sun CEO
Scott  McNealy  told  the  New York Times Friday that he was working on his
golf game this weekend.

The  San  Jose  Mercury  News  reported  on  Saturday  that Motorola Inc is
considering  whether to make a bit for troubled Apple.  A spokesman for the
Schaumburg,  Illinois-based  company  said  its policy is to not comment on
rumors.

MacWeek,  an  indistry  trade  publication,  reported  that  Apple  is also
considering  an  alliance  or  a  merger with Sony Corp.  Sony could not be
reached for comment..

But  analysts  believe  Sun  is  probably the most strategic fit that Aplle
could make that would also cause the least havoc with its employees.

"I  would  continue  to  believe  Sun  will hold their ground," said Daniel
Kunstler, a J.P.  Morgan analyst.  "It just places Apple in a conundrum, if
they don't conclude a deal, the floor could come out from under their share
price...  There is a lot of pressure on Apple.

Industry  sources  said  that Sun is not willing to pay a premium for Apple
becaue  after  the  company  announced  its  first  quarter  earnings,  its
financial  picture is now believed to be worse than many on Wall Street had
expected.

Sources  said  that  about  three weeks ago, Sun made an initial overture to
Apple  of about $28 a share, in a stock swap transaction, but after Apple's
first  quarter  loss,  it  lowered  its  bid.  Last week, it offered around
$22-23.

Sun's lower bid came after it performed due diligence on Apple's financials
and its internal inventory problem is believed worse than expected.  In the
first  quarter,  Apple  said  that  its  gross  margins were impacted by an
inventory  adjustment  of approximately $80 million.  But some sources said
that Apple's inventory problem could be worse.

One  analyst who asked not to be named doubted that Motorola was interested
in  buying  Apple.   Motorola,  which  also  develops  the PowerPC chip and
computers based on it, is one of the three companies with a vested interest
in  the  PowerPC  architecture  that  the Macintosh is now designed around,
along with IBM Corp.

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 \/  Hasta la vista, baby             E-MAIL : I.Heinicke@bamp.berlinet.de
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