Yes, Samsung makes sense to me. They wouldn't have anti-trust issues, and it would complement their SSD business. They would be number 1 in a jiffy, which at one time was their goal. I thought that that made more sense than any other option, including private equity.
However, the thing mitigating against that is that Samsung is a cheap buyer. That works sometimes, and doesn't other times. They bought Maxtor years and years ago on the cheap, and failed, selling it after years of losses (well, spinning it off to the public again). Luczo won't sell cheap, unless it is to himself, and he can't afford it by himself and the Board wouldn't approve anyway, especially after the last time they went private.
So they are on their own for the foreseeable future, unless Samsung decides to actually spend some money to be number one. It might not be a bad idea for them to do it, but it would require a change of mindset that I don't expect will happen. |
