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Biz Break: Microsoft considers bid for Yahoo, decision time for HP, iPhone 4S developmentsOct 05, 2011 (The Oakland Tribune - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Today: Rebuffed in 2008, Microsoft is reportedly again interested in buying Yahoo (YHOO). Plus, HP spinoff decision due by end of October and Apple (AAPL) iPhone 4S is the object of injunctions and speculation. Microsoft considers bid for Yahoo Yahoo shares surged Wednesday on reports that tech behemoth Microsoft may be an interested buyer. Citing sources "close to the situation," Reuters reported that Microsoft, which made an unsuccessful bid for Yahoo in 2008, may seek a partner to acquire the Sunnyvale-based Internet pioneer. Yahoo is reportedly preparing financial data for prospective buyers, who Reuters says includes Menlo Park-based Silver Lake Partners, Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba -- CEO Jack Ma said just last week that he's "very interested" -- and Russian investment firm DST Global. A Microsoft source told Reuters that no decision has yet been made, and there remain strong internal divisions over whether to pursue Yahoo again, given its low growth. Yahoo is valued at $18 billion, less than half of what it was in 2008. Yahoo backers inside Microsoft's Redmond, Wash., headquarters are said to value Yahoo's strong web portal presence, and see the move as a chance to crush rival AOL once and for all. ZDNet's Larry Dignan says a Microsoft-Yahoo merger might make sense, noting that the companies are already partners and Microsoft can't afford to let those search partnerships dissolve under a rival buyer, and Yahoo's assets in China could give Microsoft a leg up in fighting software piracy. The rumors spiked Yahoo stock, which rose $1.45, or 10.10 percent, to close at $15.92. HP decision expected by end of October Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) is speeding up the decision-making process on whether or not to spin off its PC division. New CEO Meg Whitman said Tuesday that she expects a decision by the end of the month, Bloomberg News reported. The fate of the $41 billion division of the Palo Alto-based tech icon was previously going to be decided by the end of the year under former CEO Leo Apotheker, but "we have to make a final decision," Whitman said at Fortune's Most Powerful Women conference in Southern California. "It's a decision I want to make much faster than my predecessor. I want to make it before the end of October." Stressing the need for decisive leadership, Whitman said she feels confident she knows what needs to be done to revive HP's flagging business. "I'm not in search of the manual," she explained in a Fortune report. "But there's pacing and sequencing -- there are a lot of decisions to be made." That includes reinvigorating HP's workforce of 320,000 employees, who Whitman said may be suffering from "a bit of post traumatic stress syndrome" after the company's dramatic shifts in strategy in recent months. Acknowledging the wariness of some consumers to buy HP products given the company's current unsettled state, she gave a resounding reassurance: "We are still in the hardware business!" Whitman was hopeful the company could meet analysts' expectations by the end of the fourth quarter, which ends Oct. 31; Bloomberg predicts sales of $32.1 billion and a $1.13-a-share profit. "It would be very helpful if we made those with our heads high," said Whitman. "I don't have a lot of control over that," Bloomberg reported. HP shares rose 82 cents, or 3.56 percent, to $23.86 on Wednesday. Apple iPhone 4S developments There has been no shortage of reactions after Apple released an improved iPhone 4S instead of the rumored iPhone 5 on Tuesday. Is there revolutionary technology masked in an otherwise underwhelming phone, as the Merc's Troy Wolverton writes? Or has Apple taken a far more serious fall from grace, as BGR's Zach Epstein asked? Among today's developments: -- Samsung quickly moved against Apple, announcing Wednesday it will file injunctions seeking to block imports of the iPhone 4S to France and Italy, claiming patent infringement, according to the Associated Press. "Apple has continued to flagrantly violate our intellectual property rights and free ride on our technology, and we will steadfastly protect our intellectual property," Samsung said in a statement. The two tech giants have been sparring over patent violations since the spring, when Apple accused Samsung of copying its iPad and iPhone technology in its line of Galaxy tablets and smartphones. -- Sprint became the third U.S. wireless carrier to offer the iPhone, but Bloomberg News reports it may be AT&T, the nation's second-largest carrier, that benefits the most from the 4S. According to the report, AT&T's version of the iPhone 4S will be able to process data traffic twice as fast as the versions offered by Verizon and Sprint. That's because AT&T uses HSPA technology, which is significantly faster than the CDMA technology used by its rivals. "There could be a competitive advantage," James Dailey, chief investment officer at Team Financial Asset Management LLC, told Bloomberg. "That could shift some momentum back to AT&T from Verizon." AT&T will also have exclusive rights to the cheaper iPhone 3GS. -- Sprint, meanwhile, may have to bite the financial bullet as its customers sign up for iPhones. Bloomberg News reports Sprint's quarterly margins may drop almost in half because of the high cost of the activations the company will face. "Is it better for Sprint to have the iPhone? Absolutely," Barclays Capital analyst James Ratcliffe told Bloomberg. "But in the short term they're going to take a hit." Looking long term though, Sprint "will benefit from improved retention of their customers and a high level of customer upgrades," said Michael Nelson, an analyst with Mizuho Securities. -- And those bummed that there's still no iPhone 5 may have to wait another year. CNet reports that Apple is saving the next big rollout until 4G LTE technology is fine-tuned enough that its chips are small enough to suit the iPhone's design. Apple CEO Tim Cook said in April that the first generation of LTE chips "force a lot of design compromises," and Apple is not known for compromising its design standards. Digitimes reports a thinner LTE chip won't be available until next year, and speculated on an iPhone 5 release in late 2012 or early 2013. A day after getting little love from Wall Street, Apple stock rose $5.75 or 1.54 percent Wednesday, closing at $378.25. Silicon Valley tech stocks Up: Apple, Google (GOOG), Oracle (ORCL), Intel (INTC), Cisco (CSCO), HP, eBay (EBAY), Gilead, Yahoo Down: Dialogic The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index: Up 55.69, or 2.32 percent, to 2,460.51. The blue chip Dow Jones industrial average: Up 131.24, or 1.21 percent, to 10,939.95. And the widely watched Standard & Poor's 500 index: Up 20.09, or 1.79 percent, to 1,144.04. Check in weekday afternoons for the 60-Second Business Break, a summary of news from Mercury News staff writers, The Associated Press, Bloomberg News and other wire services. ___ (c)2011 The Oakland Tribune (Oakland, Calif.) Visit The Oakland Tribune (Oakland, Calif.) at www.insidebayarea.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |