November 4th, 2009
EU showdown over Oracle-Sun; Objections seem imminent
Oracle is reportedly gearing up for a formal rejection by European regulators of its bid to acquire Sun Microsystems, according to a report in the Financial Times. An official statement of objection, the first step in blocking the $7.4 billion deal, could come as early as this week - but Oracle seems to be taking a wait-and-see approach before it makes another move.
A source tells the Financial Times that Oracle has refused to offer any concessions to regulators in Europe. Following the official statement, however, Oracle would have the chance to offer concessions or even wage a legal battle, a process that would extend a delay that’s already costing both money and jobs.
The U.S. Department of Justice has already given its blessings to the deal but the EU has expressed concerns over the future of MySQL. Opponents see the open source software as an eventual competitor to Oracle’s core business. But the company has said that it will continue to invest in MySQL.
Sun, which was already a financially-troubled company when Oracle made its acquisition bid, recently laid off 3,000 employees as part of a restructuring plans that stems from delays in regulatory approval. Oracle CEO Larry Ellison recently said that delays are costing about $100 million per month.
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Sam Diaz is a senior editor at ZDNet. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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