No one really knows exactly what's going on inside the walls of Palm HQ this week -- whether the company will sink or swim is perhaps a bigger question right now than it has been since its rebirth last year, and if it
does swim,
whether it remains independent is another matter altogether. In an SEC filing today, Palm quietly revealed that its senior VP of software and services -- Michael Abbott (pictured above), a man who has been largely responsible for webOS as a platform and the critical Mojo and Ares SDKs -- will be gone as of April 23. More interestingly, though, it had to hook up a couple other key players with stock packages and $250,000 in cold, hard cash to get them to agree to stick around for a couple years: Jeff Devine, SVP of global operations, and Doug Jeffries, the CFO. Yes, that's right -- Palm's chief financial officer may have damn near split in the past few days, which is
never a good sign for a company whose financial stability is in question. More on this situation as it develops.
[Thanks, Herman]
Update: Since our original report, a number of SEC Form 4s have crossed the wire, indicating that Palm is handing out various quantities of shares to pretty much everyone on the executive roster. Acquisitions frequently involve retention deals for key company players to make sure that the buyer's new assets aren't instantly brain-drained, so it's entirely possible that this is all a harbinger of an impending deal.
posted April 16th 2010 8:53PM
not to bad for em
@victorvelasco1 damn the shit's hit tha fan!
I love engaged ... these reports have no clue how the cookie crumbles.
So just you know guys, most of the VP and up get a lot of restricted stock all the time (this is common for every larger company out there), guess what. When another company buys Palm, all this stock automatically vests and they can sell it. If Palm would be so bad, the stock would tank while ago, if HTC or other company buys it, the stock might go slightly up, it will probably not go down (company sale almost never pushed the stock down)
so at the end, exec who stick around might make huge profits
@victorvelasco1
If the company is failing it's probably because of something the people who are working there are doing something wrong...
Why pay them to stay?
@victorvelasco1
Rats fleeing a sinking ship?
dang that was fast...
Im gonna pour some Apple Drank on the corner for my Homies!
@Jimbojones I love lamp.
This isn't too ba...wait, CFO needs incentives to stick around?
SELL SELL SELL, DUMP IT ALL!
@victorvelasco1 The restricted stock bonuses were around a quarter million shares EACH. That's a million+ dollars at today's stock price!
Not too bad for them!
@victorvelasco1 Hey Engadget... Just a tip: If Palm is so great and mighty, how come you guys didnt invest all of your money into their stocks? Cos to me it seems that you guys really do believe in their business.
Or no change was spared from investing heavily in another iStock?
@victorvelasco1 Palm will Prevail
And you have no clue how to spell engadget
@ongadget - I hope so. Looking forward to a slate w/ a 5mp camera & wifi (duh). Just wishful thinking, but it would be very good. The Pre's a little wobbly but still a very good phone- 8 months in, which is a record for me.
@victorvelasco1
I have a GREAT idea that will solve Palm's problem. They should spin off into two seperate company's... one for OS and one for Hardware. Then Palm Hardware could license the WebOS for their hardware. Problem solved!
@victorvelasco1 Engadget got it wrong. Abott is not a software guy, he's a services guy. Same guy who bungled MS's .Net. The software guy who might have disappeared is Dennis Ting.
@Senses Well, Engadget got it wrong with the "Update" wording, too - you don't pay the CFO to stay around for a buyout that's real. That idea is just silly.
Cash awards are given to STOP departures dead, non-cash to stop possible departures.
@Dig Deep Yeah, the people in charge of marketing needed to be pushed out a long time ago.
Hmmm...at this point in time filings have NOT been made for Way Ting or Mary Doyle.
This guy joined Palm in April 2008!
I bet you, if he had ANY WebOS input it was in final polishing stages of it...
Also quite naive to think one person, is responsible for a whole OS. Or that he or any single person leaving means OS is dead.
Also if u check job offers from palm, only in 2010, you can see they are hardly stalled...
@jknochel76
If it was up to Sally Field, it would be spelled Engidget!
Palm, I trusted you!
NVM, I still trust you.
@pavlindrom
Abandon ship!
HTC needs to buy Palm already!
@ryan420
No, wait until it hits $0.50 a share.. Then buy!
And make them throw in a coka cola ala MR. Burns!
AAHHAH
@ryan420
HTC may be able to benefit well from the Palm framework, but not the Palm management. Once those who are responsible for its present state have left the picture then Palm will be ripe for the picking.
@AppleDrank HTC EVO
@ryan420 I think FaceBook should buy them and create the ultimate FacePalm.
In a way I feel sorry for them. They made a great effort with the Pre but webapps aren't that powerful and developers just haven't made that many apps for it.
Android is better than the WebOS so no other company needs to buy Palm for the software. The hardware design is nice aesthetically but functionally lacking.
They're going down fast.
As long as they don't waste that cash on stupid feminine ads, there may be a new hope for palm
@Lord Vader
who's talking?
/s
@pavlindrom. Your superior
@Lord Vader Now they'll feel the full power of the Jobs-Schmidt side. =-O
@Lord Vader I see what you did there.
@Lord Vader Awww, come on now. Pale Girl was kinda cute. But what was that phone she was using? Looked like some kind of iPhone wannabe.
@Lord Vader
They were feminine?
@Lord Vader
You are no longer the superior, you shall bid to thy master....
@Darth Vadar
...
@Lord Vader
Don't you ever get tired of all these idiots trying to rip off your name?
Okay, you'll run with this story (as you should) but completely ignore the fact that someone purchased damn near 10% of the company's stock a few days ago. Got it.
@sweet greggo You are an extraordinarily angry individual, I've noticed.
@Chris Ziegler. Yes, his is doing well for a young padawan, his rage will make him stronger with the darkside
@sweet greggo
That means nothing. They can also sell it the next time it pops since this stock is basically a high stakes gamble now.
@Chris Ziegler
It's true. But surely you can see how this site can appear slanted sometimes. Is there any reason engadget didn't report that significant purchase of stock? And why Ross and Josh appear to hate Sprint? Or should I just sign up with ATT, buy an iphone and stfu about it?
@sweet greggo Why ignore at the same time that T Rowe Price sold a huge chunk of Palm stock - and THEY are not a hedge fund.
@sweet greggo
That's the mobile industry for you, pick a side, good or evil. Sprint or AT&T. Android or Apple.
@Lord Vader There is good in him.
@BergerFan. Have you even seen his comments? There's no going back for him. He has joined me in the darkside forever
@sweet greggo - Engadget isn't a blog about stocks. If you're interested in one, which it appears that you are, I recommend Aol's Blogging Stocks.
@sweet greggo
That's EXACTLY what you should do greggo.
While you're at please leave this blog and go terrorize another. Or better yet go to the google android boards and go love google over there.
We don't care about android here. We don't care if you hate Apple.
Apple is what brings people to this site and it's Apple news that gets the most results and hits.
Deal with it Apple Hater
@TheRogueFFAngel
I have a Palm Pre, genius. Please don't drink and post.
@TheRogueFFAngel And you're an unreasonable apple fanboy. I've noticed.
@TheRogueFFAngel Yea people love apple so much they had make an exclude apple feature...
@sweet greggo
Does it matter? You're still an Apple Hater
And I've said it a million times before...I'm NOT an Apple Fanboy.
I consider myself an Apple SUPPORTER. I don't own everything Apple.
As of this moment I own a 360 Elite, Windows 7 laptop, Apple iPhone 3GS, Samsung HDTV, and I'm CONSIDERING getting an iPad for myself. Already got 2 for my mom and little brother.