Oracle to buy Sun for 7.5 billion

Full of Win · Apr 20, 2009, 08:43 AM

http://money.cnn.com/2009/04/20/tech...ion=2009042008

wonder what this means for ZFS and Apple, if anything.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Business software maker Oracle Corp. said Monday it has entered into a definitive agreement to buy server builder Sun Microsystems in a deal worth $7.4 billion.

Oracle (ORCL, Fortune 500) said it will buy Sun (JAVA, Fortune 500) common stock for $9.50 per share in cash, a 42% premium from Friday's closing price of $6.69.

After accounting for Sun's cash and debt, the deal's value is $5.6 billion, the companies said.

The Redwood Shores, Calif.-based Oracle said it expects Sun to contribute over $1.5 billion to its operating profit this year, and over $2 billion in the second year.

On a per share basis, Oracle expects Sun "to be accretive" to its adjusted earnings by at least 15 cents in the first full year after closing. The deal is expected to close this summer, Oracle said.

The announcement comes after Sun reportedly rejected a $7 billion buyout offer from IBM (IBM, Fortune 500) earlier this month.

"The acquisition of Sun transforms the IT industry," said Oracle chief executive Larry Ellison, in a statement. "Our customers benefit as their systems integration costs go down while system performance, reliability and security go up."

Oracle said it sees "strategic customer advantages" to owning two of Sun's most popular software products: the programming language Java and the Solaris operating system.

"This is a fantastic day for Sun's customers, developers, partners and employees across the globe," said Jonathan Schwartz, Sun's chief executive. "Joining forces with the global leader in enterprise software to drive innovation and value across every aspect of the technology marketplace."

The deal is subject to Sun stockholder approval, certain regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. To top of page

edesignuk · Apr 20, 2009, 08:45 AM

Holy crap. Oracle!?

Lone Deranger · Apr 20, 2009, 08:46 AM

Oracle.... not Apple then....

pilotError · Apr 20, 2009, 09:22 AM

Bad news for everybody.

Oracle has a nasty habit of picking the pieces of a company apart and then selling off the worthless carcass that remains.

Wow... The antitrust commission should just shoot this one down...

sreedy · Apr 20, 2009, 10:15 AM

Be interesting to see what happens to mysql , and Java for that matter.

iJawn108 · Apr 20, 2009, 11:17 AM

oracle :\ lame

twoodcc · Apr 20, 2009, 11:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sreedy

Be interesting to see what happens to mysql , and Java for that matter.

very interesting.

ChrisA · Apr 20, 2009, 11:56 AM

I was pretty excited about the IBM deal. But if this deal with Oracle goes down it's pretty much the death of Sun.

cube · Apr 20, 2009, 12:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChrisA

I was pretty excited about the IBM deal. But if this deal with Oracle goes down it's pretty much the death of Sun.

You have it backwards.

cube · Apr 20, 2009, 12:32 PM

http://www.oracle.com/sun/sun-faq.pdf

Saladinos · Apr 20, 2009, 12:52 PM

It never really made sense for Apple to buy Sun. Most of their products (things like Java and Solaris) would have simply been scrapped because Apple didn't need them.

Apple does need to bring in server expertise, and on that front Sun would be ideal. Unfortunately it wouldn't justify the $7Bn price tag. Maybe Apple will be able to hire people leaving Sun due to the acquisition, or maybe they're just not going to concentrate on the corporate and server markets.

mmccaskill · Apr 20, 2009, 01:38 PM

Goodbye Solaris, SPARC, VirtualBox and Java. Now all Oracle needs to do is buy RedHat(JBoss). Could kill both at the same time.

BornAgainMac · Apr 20, 2009, 02:57 PM

MySQL should either die or get a real backup tool. Dumping your database or doing cold backups is not a good backup method compared to using Oracle's RMAN utility.

SPARC will probably meet it's end too.

Doctor Q · Apr 20, 2009, 04:47 PM

As a database programmer, a member of the Oracle developer program, a MySQL user, and a Solaris user and administrator, I'm surprised at this deal and very very interested in how it plays out.

Quote:

Originally Posted by BornAgainMac

SPARC will probably meet it's end too.

Why do you think so? That's a mighty big part of what Sun is. I can understand spinning off MySQL, but not jettisoning Sun's core businesses or Sun's own technology.

twoodcc · Apr 20, 2009, 08:22 PM

i really hope mysql stays

ravenvii · Apr 20, 2009, 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mmccaskill

Goodbye Solaris, SPARC, VirtualBox and Java. Now all Oracle needs to do is buy RedHat(JBoss). Could kill both at the same time.

Not necessarily. Solaris has been open sourced as OpenSolaris. VirtualBox is open source. Java has been open sourced.

Those projects will live on as long as there's open source developers willing to continue developing it.

Doctor Q · Apr 20, 2009, 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by twoodcc

i really hope mysql stays

You might be interested in the comments by analyst Jon Brodkin, who thinks MySQL may do just fine.

Evangelion · Apr 21, 2009, 12:41 AM

I wonder what this means for Suns hardware-business... It would be a shame to see of die. Another thing that interests me is what this means for Linux. Oracle is a big supporter of Linux. I wonder if Oracle is going to start making bits and pieces of Solaris available for Linux.

Small White Car · Apr 21, 2009, 12:48 AM

I saw this earlier today and I don't think I can improve on it, so I'll just leave you with the link:

http://twitter.com/Tony_D/status/1566396942

Prom1 · 12:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sreedy

Be interesting to see what happens to mysql , and Java for that matter.

Indeed!

Wonder how this will affect Blackberry and other J2ME licensees?! I know SUN's trouble along with Microsoft's has been the reason for the delay in MIDP3.0 or JSR 271. Wonder how J2ME as a whole will continue or die or evolve into Java FX?

Quote:

Originally Posted by mmccaskill

Goodbye Solaris, SPARC, VirtualBox and Java. Now all Oracle needs to do is buy RedHat(JBoss). Could kill both at the same time.

I thought Sparc was already dead.

Quote:

Originally Posted by edesignuk

Holy crap. Oracle!?

^ LMAO ... Motorboat!

Pika · Apr 21, 2009, 01:15 AM

I use MySQL for my forum board database. Is this going to change? Like the time when Adobe bought Macromedia?

BTW · Apr 21, 2009, 01:17 AM

If Oracle is smart they'd take all the software and sell-off the hardware business to the likes of IBM, HP, Dell, or even

Apple. I'm sure Larry and Steve are still buds.

Darth.Titan · Apr 21, 2009, 01:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cube

http://www.oracle.com/sun/sun-faq.pdf

You guys really should read this before asking some of these questions. There is some good info here. Besides, this is not exactly a done deal just yet...

hooch · Apr 21, 2009, 01:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Prom1

I thought Sparc was already dead.

Sparc chips are very very good chips imo. We are in the process of ordering two 5240s with the T2 chips to consolidate about 20 servers down to two. Should really save the company money on power consumption and Oracle licensing. Solaris containers are really cool and I am still a bigger fan of Solaris than Linux. I know I am in the minority, but I just don't see the lovefest with moving everything to linux.

tyr2 · Apr 21, 2009, 01:51 AM

To me this make so much more sense than the IBM deal. Hopefully it secures the future of Solaris, Oracle have clearly wanted their own OS for some time and Solaris is the perfect opportunity. Having a hardware arm as well enables Oracle to sell a 'database to disk' solution, if they get this right this can be a really good sell.

As to SPARC I'm not sure. The T2 processors are really excellent and if Rock ever sees the light of day then SPARC really might start capture some mind share again.

Oracle are well invested in Java as well, so I'd hope it has a bright future.

Who knows what'll happen to MySQL, there's a market for it but how big it is in the long term really remains to be seen.

Apr 20, 2009, 08:43 AM	#1
Full of Win macrumors 6502a Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: standing by for the Go Signal	Oracle to buy Sun for 7.5 billion http://money.cnn.com/2009/04/20/tech...ion=2009042008 wonder what this means for ZFS and Apple, if anything. NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Business software maker Oracle Corp. said Monday it has entered into a definitive agreement to buy server builder Sun Microsystems in a deal worth $7.4 billion. Oracle (ORCL, Fortune 500) said it will buy Sun (JAVA, Fortune 500) common stock for $9.50 per share in cash, a 42% premium from Friday's closing price of $6.69. After accounting for Sun's cash and debt, the deal's value is $5.6 billion, the companies said. The Redwood Shores, Calif.-based Oracle said it expects Sun to contribute over $1.5 billion to its operating profit this year, and over $2 billion in the second year. On a per share basis, Oracle expects Sun "to be accretive" to its adjusted earnings by at least 15 cents in the first full year after closing. The deal is expected to close this summer, Oracle said. The announcement comes after Sun reportedly rejected a $7 billion buyout offer from IBM (IBM, Fortune 500) earlier this month. "The acquisition of Sun transforms the IT industry," said Oracle chief executive Larry Ellison, in a statement. "Our customers benefit as their systems integration costs go down while system performance, reliability and security go up." Oracle said it sees "strategic customer advantages" to owning two of Sun's most popular software products: the programming language Java and the Solaris operating system. "This is a fantastic day for Sun's customers, developers, partners and employees across the globe," said Jonathan Schwartz, Sun's chief executive. "Joining forces with the global leader in enterprise software to drive innovation and value across every aspect of the technology marketplace." The deal is subject to Sun stockholder approval, certain regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. To top of page

Apr 20, 2009, 08:45 AM	#2
edesignuk Demi-God (Moderator emeritus) Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Great(?) Britain	Holy crap. Oracle!? __________________ Search before you post: MRoogle **Better BBC Search**

Apr 20, 2009, 10:15 AM	#5
sreedy macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Somerset	Be interesting to see what happens to mysql , and Java for that matter. __________________ Home 20" Alu iMac, Work 1.2Ghz G4 iBook running Leopard, Tunes iPod Touch, week 42 love it! & Camera Nikon D70

Apr 20, 2009, 11:17 AM	#6
iJawn108 macrumors 65816 Join Date: Apr 2006	oracle :\ lame __________________ Black MacBook \| Core Duo 2 GHz \| 2 GB Ram \| 320 GB HDD \| OS X Snow Leopard 10.6 - iPod Touch \| 16 GB Camino OpenSolaris

Apr 20, 2009, 01:38 PM	#12
mmccaskill macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: NC	Goodbye Solaris, SPARC, VirtualBox and Java. Now all Oracle needs to do is buy RedHat(JBoss). Could kill both at the same time. __________________ MacPro: 2 x 2.8GHz, 10GB RAM, 2 x 750GB HD in RAID0, 8800GT 30" ACD Uni MacBook Pro, 2.53GHz, 4GB RAM, 250GB 7200RPM

Apr 20, 2009, 08:46 AM	#3
Lone Deranger macrumors 6502 Join Date: Apr 2006	Oracle.... not Apple then....

Apr 20, 2009, 09:22 AM	#4
pilotError macrumors 68000 Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Long Island	Bad news for everybody. Oracle has a nasty habit of picking the pieces of a company apart and then selling off the worthless carcass that remains. Wow... The antitrust commission should just shoot this one down...

Apr 20, 2009, 11:56 AM	#8
ChrisA macrumors 601 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Redondo Beach, California	I was pretty excited about the IBM deal. But if this deal with Oracle goes down it's pretty much the death of Sun.

Apr 20, 2009, 12:32 PM	#10
cube macrumors 68040 Join Date: May 2004	http://www.oracle.com/sun/sun-faq.pdf

Apr 20, 2009, 12:52 PM	#11
Saladinos macrumors 65816 Join Date: Feb 2008	It never really made sense for Apple to buy Sun. Most of their products (things like Java and Solaris) would have simply been scrapped because Apple didn't need them. Apple does need to bring in server expertise, and on that front Sun would be ideal. Unfortunately it wouldn't justify the $7Bn price tag. Maybe Apple will be able to hire people leaving Sun due to the acquisition, or maybe they're just not going to concentrate on the corporate and server markets.

Apr 20, 2009, 02:57 PM	#13
BornAgainMac macrumors 68030 Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Florida Resident	MySQL should either die or get a real backup tool. Dumping your database or doing cold backups is not a good backup method compared to using Oracle's RMAN utility. SPARC will probably meet it's end too.

Apr 20, 2009, 08:22 PM	#15
twoodcc macrumors 603 Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Right side of wrong	i really hope mysql stays __________________ tville pump Smarter than the average bear

Apr 21, 2009, 12:41 AM	#18
Evangelion macrumors 68040 Join Date: Jan 2005	I wonder what this means for Suns hardware-business... It would be a shame to see of die. Another thing that interests me is what this means for Linux. Oracle is a big supporter of Linux. I wonder if Oracle is going to start making bits and pieces of Solaris available for Linux. __________________ Anyone who thinks that Obama is a "Marxist" is so clueless that it's scary. Consider getting some education.

Apr 21, 2009, 12:48 AM	#19
Small White Car macrumors 68040 Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Washington DC	I saw this earlier today and I don't think I can improve on it, so I'll just leave you with the link: http://twitter.com/Tony_D/status/1566396942

Apr 21, 2009, 01:15 AM	#21
Pika macrumors 68000 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Japan	I use MySQL for my forum board database. Is this going to change? Like the time when Adobe bought Macromedia? __________________ 2009 Apple Workstation

Apr 21, 2009, 01:17 AM	#22
BTW macrumors 6502 Join Date: Mar 2007	If Oracle is smart they'd take all the software and sell-off the hardware business to the likes of IBM, HP, Dell, or even Apple. I'm sure Larry and Steve are still buds. __________________ Tory Hagen Break the Wedge!

Apr 21, 2009, 01:51 AM	#25
tyr2 macrumors 6502a Join Date: May 2006 Location: Leeds, UK	To me this make so much more sense than the IBM deal. Hopefully it secures the future of Solaris, Oracle have clearly wanted their own OS for some time and Solaris is the perfect opportunity. Having a hardware arm as well enables Oracle to sell a 'database to disk' solution, if they get this right this can be a really good sell. As to SPARC I'm not sure. The T2 processors are really excellent and if Rock ever sees the light of day then SPARC really might start capture some mind share again. Oracle are well invested in Java as well, so I'd hope it has a bright future. Who knows what'll happen to MySQL, there's a market for it but how big it is in the long term really remains to be seen.

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode