The poster did not date this item so it may be old news (we are all aware of this rumour) but it sounds like it is dated this week because it seems to refer to the European announcementa couple of days ago. I checked the link but did not see it. perhaps someone else would like to try? Perhaps this is one of Capellas' big announcements? iteuropa.com
My guess is that such an announcment might give an initial pop in the share price, but the likes of Kumar would weigh in with warnings that the unrest caused among COMPAQ's other distribution partners and its re-sellers in the US and Europe, will disrupt sales in the short-term. Since COMPAQ knows that this might be said, its announcment better address these issues.
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Yahoo Zoo
Inacom???
by: euroexpert 12/9/1999 6:26 am EST
Msg: 122395 of 122397
Just found this on www.iteuropa.com
Compaq set to buy Inacom
US Resellers say that Compaq is close to buying a big US dealer - probably Inacom. Yesterday. it announced it would sell direct over the net, converting its resellers into service providers. A big Dutch dealer said: "I asked Compaq managers here why there was no more warning of the announcement. They said: 'We got none ourselves. The announcement had to be rushed through before Compaq announces its acquisition later this week!" The rumour circulating amongst UK dealers is that Compaq's target is Inacom.
A Dutch distributor was also told by Compaq to expect an acquisition later this week. In an interview yesterday Maati Virtanen, vice president worldwide channels, Compaq, first told IT Europa that he was personally unaware of any acquisition. Subsequently a Compaq spokesperson rang to alter his quote to read "there will not be any European acquisition." This, of course, does not rule out the acquisition of Inacom! We were unable to reach Compaq as we went to press.
OUR ANALYSIS: Buying Inacom would make a lot of sense, giving Compaq the infrastructure it needs to service its large accounts in the USA. It also, of course, would spell doom for many other big American dealers deriving 40pc or 50pc of their business selling Compaq to large accounts. Buying Inacom does not mean that Compaq is planning similar purchases in Europe, where the market is much more fragmented. But such a deal would dramatically increase the distrust and unease which European resellers feel about the Compaq announcement. Most large dealers still tell us they are making over half their profits from product resell! And most of their services are dependent upon, and directly related to, those product sales. Certainly such an acquisition would cast a huge shadow over the share prices of European resellers such as Computacenter, Also and Systemat. It could also end offers for Info'products, the big Dutch/French PC dealer whose parent Buhrmann has been boasting that it has several offers of over ?200m ($204.88m). |
