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From beginning to breakup: a history of HP's highs and lows
HP's recent decision to split into two companies is undoubtedly a big deal. It's a cornerstone of Silicon Valley, and it has been synonymous with PCs for much of its lifetime. However, this is really just the latest chapter for a technology legend that has witnessed plenty of triumphs and disasters throughout its 75-year history. We've rounded up some of its greatest and lowest moments in a gallery, ranging from its humble beginnings in a garage to the webOS era and a series of scandals -- check them out if you want to know how HP reached yet another turning point. [Image credit: Kimihiro Hoshino/AFP/Getty Images]
HP pays $10.4 billion for controlling interest in Autonomy, which will remain autonomous
VoodooPC. 3Com. And, perhaps most notoriously, Palm. The list of HP acquisitions grows by one today, with the purchase of UK information-software maker Autonomy, long a target of former HP chief Léo Apotheker. Apotheker, you may recall, was just ousted in favor of former eBay CEO Meg Whitman. The deal began during Apotheker's tenure and went through with HP paying just about $10.4 billion for a controlling percentage of Autonomy stock. The UK firm will remain a separate unit, with Whitman saying, "Autonomy significantly increases our capabilities to manage and extract meaning from that data to drive insight, foresight and better decision making." Something tells us she's not the only one hoping for some better decision making. For full details on HP's latest buy, check the source link.
HP names Meg Whitman new President and CEO, gives Leo Apotheker the boot
Well, after less than a year on the job as HP's top dog Leo Apotheker is out, and former eBay CEO and one time candidate for California governor Meg Whitman is in. The move was hardly unexpected, but it very quickly evolved from quiet mumblings and rumors to full-fledged fact this afternoon. It was initially expected that Whitman would only be stepping in as an interim solution -- just another person passing through the revolving door at the entrance to the CEO's office. But, Whitman, a current board member, is in for the long haul. She's stepping in at a crucial and somewhat difficult time for the company that has seen its stock price plummet 47 percent, its $1.2 billion mobile OS flounder and is considering spinning off its PC business. She is no stranger to controversy (simply refer to her short tenure with Goldman Sachs) and was an integral part in growing eBay from a startup with just a couple of dozen staff members to one of the most popular destinations on the internet -- so, at least she's accustomed to having a few curve balls thrown her way. In a statement, Whitman said, "I am honored and excited to lead HP. I believe HP matters – it matters to Silicon Valley, California, the country and the world." The company also announced today that Ray Lane is moving from a non-executive chairman role to executive chairman of the board of directors, and that the board intends to appoint a lead independent director "promptly." HP's press release and some information from the company's investor call announcing the decision are right after the break.
All Things D: HP kept executives in the dark about webOS decision
If you thought the saga surrounding HP's decision to cease production of webOS devices was over, you may be mistaken. All Things D reported yesterday that key executives -- specifically Todd Bradley of the currently-in-limbo Personal Systems Group and former Palm CEO Jon Rubinstein -- weren't informed of the move until Sunday night. The blog's inside sources say the two plan to remain at their posts for the time being, however, that could change dependent on what happens next with webOS. Those sources also noted that Rubinstein wasn't exactly thrilled about the timing of the TouchPad's release, saying CEO Leo Apotheker had failed to make good on a public promise to ship the tablet only when it was "perfect." So will they stay or will they go? It's anyone's guess at this point, but you can bet we'll keep you posted.
HP confirms it's in talks about licensing webOS, Samsung tipped as a possibility
HP CEO Leo Apotheker has already indicated that he's totally open to licensing webOS to other companies, and he's now confirmed that HP has, in fact, been in talks with a "number of companies" about that possibility. Not surprisingly, he didn't get much more specific than that, and went some way to dampen expectations a bit, saying that "there is no time pressure to do this." According to Bloomberg, however, "three people with knowledge of the discussions" say that Samsung is one of the companies HP has had talks with, and one said that the company is specifically interested in possibly using webOS for its Galaxy Tab tablets. HP's Jon Rubinstein also dished a bit more on the subject to This is my next, noting that "if someone wants to really invest, and potentially help develop webOS, we're interested in talking to them," although he went on to indicate that HP isn't interested in playing second (or third) fiddle with a company primarily focused on Android or Windows Phone -- it'd seemingly have to be webOS first, but not necessarily webOS exclusively.
HP's Leo Apotheker totally open to licensing webOS to other handset makers
We just wrapped up our liveblog of HP CEO Leo Apotheker's appearance here at D9, and while he certainly spoke far too frequently about printers, there was one nugget that we just couldn't overlook. When speaking casually about the future of webOS on non-HP handsets, he noted that the firm was looking to license webOS to various other hardware manufacturers. Granted, the bulk of these are likely to be wrapped up in the enterprise, but he's not tossing out the idea of using webOS on other mobile devices. When asked if he'd consider licensing webOS to a company like HTC, he confessed to being very willing to having that conversation should the scenario present itself -- a stance that's quite different than the one held by the "old HP." It's hard to say if he's just shooting the breeze or if there's already a company or two behind the scenes looking to do just that, but either way, you can bet we'll be keeping our eyes peeled for any webOS creations sans HP's labeling. Talk about a serious play to get the attention of developers.
Live from D9: HP CEO Leo Apotheker takes the stage
D9's rolling right along here in California, and HP's head honcho is on deck. With the Pre 3 and TouchPad just around the bend (right?), we're hoping to hear some pretty potent stuff surrounding the next iteration of webOS. Of course, we could be in for a solid hour of printer and blade server discussion. Either way, we'll be making the most of it. Join us after the break as we follow it live, won't you?
WebOS will be on 'every HP PC' shipping next year, says CEO
You'd think Leo Apotheker, HP's newest CEO, would want to save a bit of thunder for his March 14th event. Instead, the man continues to unleash stentorian quotes with unabashed candor like today's claim that "HP has lost its soul." He's also making bold proclamations about every HP PC being able to run WebOS and MIcrosoft Windows as an integrated experience in 2012 -- a move the company hopes will create a "massive platform" to attract those all important developers. Apotheker's strategy will reverse Mark Hurd's cost-cutting emphasis with a renewed focus on product quality and innovation -- the latter achieved by breaking down inter-company barriers that currently separate product groups and by boosting the R&D budget already pegged at $2.96 billion last year (a pittance by some measurements). Click the source link below to read the Businessweek article in full if you're interested in Leo's issue with being the smartest person in the room and his attempts at Californication. Cool? Awesome.
HP TouchPad on sale in April?
The official TouchPad launch date isn't even a date per se, but a season: summer. So we're surprised to see DigiTimes reporting that HP will take delivery of shipments in March with the TouchPad going on sale in April with plans to ship 4 - 5 million units from the TouchPad "series" in 2011. Based on what we know, both from using the software-incomplete pre-production tablet and from our detailed discussions with Jon Rubinstein, an April retail date would be extremely aggressive to say the least. And DigiTimes' accuracy with regard to rumors for companies located outside of its home country of Taiwan is spotty at best. Nevertheless, HP's new CEO Leo Apotheker did say originally, that products announced at the February 9th event would be on sale just a few weeks later. Unfortunately, only the wee Veer handset got an early spring promise with the Pre 3 joining the TouchPad for a summer launch. Perhaps this will be a case of HP under promising and over delivering? We can't say for sure. But with any luck, HP could bring some clarity to the matter on March 14th -- a day Apotheker had promised a big reveal regarding a "secret answer" and "vision of what HP is capable of in the future... the starting point." Why so mysterious, Leo?
HP CEO says company is taking 'too long to get to market' with innovations, we wholeheartedly agree
Leo Apotheker, HP's successor to the infamous Mark Hurd, has sat down for a chat with the Wall Street Journal recently, and while most of it is innocuous corporate-speak -- "we need to fire up our innovation engine" -- there was one quote that piqued our interest. The new chief believes HP needs to get its products to market faster, rejecting Sam Palmisano's suggestion that HP has lost its innovative touch and insisting that his company's weakness has been in just not getting the products out to store shelves quickly enough. Of course, you could say that that's an error HP is repeating again with the launch of its new webOS devices -- the TouchPad, the Pre 3 and the Veer -- none of which are expected to arrive before this spring. However, to be fair to Apotheker, he's still relatively new to the job and these words from him could well signal a change for the better in future product cycles. Full interview at the source.
HP CEO: New webOS products shipping weeks after February 9 reveal, another big announcement March 14
It's been a few months since Leo Apotheker took the top spot at HP following the Mark Hurd debacle, and it sounds like he's got some big plans for the company -- speaking to the BBC, he says he hopes "one day people will say 'this is as cool as HP,' not 'this is as cool as Apple.'" How does he plan on doing that? By speeding up ship times, for starters -- unlike the year-long wait for the HP Slate, Apotheker says that "when HP makes announcements, it will be getting ready to ship," and that the new webOS products announced on February 9 will ship just a "few weeks" later. Speaking of the February 9 event, Apotheker said the new product line of tablets and mobile phones will have a new name that falls under the HP brand, which sounds like the Palm name is done for. (If we had to guess, it'll be HP webOS, but that's just a guess.) On top of all that, the BBC calls February 9 just the "starting gun," because Apotheker's "secret answer" and "vision of what HP is capable of in the future" will come on March 14, where he'll try to pull together HP's vast product portfolio into a cohesive narrative. According to Apotheker, HP's size is its "basis of strength," and no other company sells everything from servers to phones the way HP does. Sounds extremely exciting -- and if Apotheker can pull it off, there's a chance we'll remember Mark Hurd's dalliance as the best thing that ever happened to HP. [Thanks, soydeedo]
