Friday, June 06, 2003

WSJ.com - ORCL/PSFT: "... a ludicrous concept with malicious intent"

WSJ.com - ORCL/PSFT: "... a ludicrous concept with malicious intent" "But later in the day, PeopleSoft Chief Executive Craig Conway denounced Oracle's move as a desperate act. In an interview from Paris, Mr. Conway said the deal is an example of "atrociously bad behavior from an atrociously bad company" and PeopleSoft's directors were appalled by Oracle's action.
"It's like having a wedding and Larry [Ellison] showing up with a shotgun trying to get someone to marry him," said Mr. Conway, who joined PeopleSoft in 1999 and worked at Oracle for eight years.
...
Oracle's offer represented a premium of 5.9% to PeopleSoft's closing price of $15.11 a share Thursday. But in trading Friday on the Nasdaq Stock Market, shares of PeopleSoft surged $3.10, or 21%, to $18.21, indicating investors are betting Oracle, of Redwood Shores, Calif., may have to raise its bid to close the deal. Shares of Oracle, meanwhile, fell 32 cents to $13.04, also on Nasdaq.
...
PeopleSoft's Mr. Conway acknowledged that Oracle's move could confuse customers and result in a protracted dispute. But he vowed not to let Oracle "distract or disrupt" the J.D. Edwards acquisition or PeopleSoft's current quarter, which ends June 30. "People will see through this for what it is: a ludicrous concept with malicious intent," Mr. Conway said."

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