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Technology Stocks : Compaq -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Night Writer who wrote (95030)	1/31/2002 12:55:49 PM
From: Night Writer	Respond to of 97611

EU Commission clears merger of Hewlett-Packard with Compaq Computer BRUSSELS, Belgium, Jan 31, 2002 (AP WorldStream via COMTEX) -- The European Union ruled Thursday that the planned dlrs 23.6 billion merger of Hewlett-Packard Co. with Compaq Computer Corp. does not raise competition concerns in Europe, an important step on the road to full approval of the deal. A U.S. review of the merger is still underway and the deal still faces shareholder approval. The approval means the EU's antitrust office gives the companies the all-clear to move ahead and will not launch a four-month investigation into antitrust concerns. "A careful analysis of the merger, the largest ever in the information technology sector, and of the competitive forces in the markets concerned has shown that HP would not be in a position to increase prices and that consumers would continue to benefit from sufficient choice and innovation," an EU statement said. The merger of the two U.S. computer rivals forced the EU Commission into its biggest European antitrust decision since it blocked the dlrs 46 billion bid by General Electric for Honeywell last year. A four-month in-depth probe by the European Commission would have been especially problematic for HP as it tries to rein in rebellious shareholders, observers said. Instead, early clearance in Europe could help HP win over some shareholders. Carly Fiorina, HP chairman and chief executive officer said in a statement the announcement is "an encouraging step in the continuing process of satisfying regulators worldwide that this deal will provide a real stimulus for competition." Compaq was equally pleased. "This is an important milestone, particularly given the significance of Europe to us," said Michael Capellas, Compaq chairman and chief executive officer. "We will continue to work with regulators around the world in satisfying their requirements." Observers said HP avoided the rushed filings and public comments that helped doom General Electric Co.'s bid for Honeywell International Inc. last summer. A source close to the talks said all sides were involved in tough negotiations until the last days, with Germany's Siemens pushing hard to have the European Commission extend the investigation. Fujitsu-Siemens Computers is among the top 10 manufacturers of servers in the world and was one of the few companies to argue against the merger. HP and Compaq together would have only about 22 or 23 percent of the European market for personal computers, but around 47 percent of the market for more powerful servers and disk storage units, according to market researchers Gartner-Dataquest. Palo Alto, California-based HP and Houston-based Compaq have said they would await regulatory clearance before setting a date for a shareholder vote. --- On the Net: Pro-merger site: votethehpway.com Hewlett site: votenohpcompaq.com By RAF CASERT Associated Press Writer Copyright 2002 Associated Press, All rights reserved