Apple Smartphone Competitor Palm Rumored to Be Up for Sale
If just-breaking rumors are true, Apple may soon find themselves with one less competitor in the smartphone world.Bloomberg is reporting that embattled Palm, who made an amazing comeback less than a year ago with the Palm Pre smartphone and its new webOS software, may be seeking bids for a sale of the company this week, according to three people with knowledge of the situation.Supposedly, Palm is working with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. as well as Frank Quattrone’s Qatalyst Partners in an effort to find a buyer for the war-weary smartphone maker, with both Taiwan’s HTC Corp. and China’s Lenovo Group Ltd. having taken a peek at the company, with offers pending.“Palm still has quite a good brand in the U.S. market, and some strong technology, so you can do something with it,” explains technology analyst Frank He at Hong Kong’s BOC International Holdings Ltd. “The shares have gone down a lot and the company may become attractive to anyone looking for a turnaround play.”The rumors are particularly interesting in the wake of Apple’s recent patent lawsuit against rival HTC, who has invested heavily in Google’s Android operating system but also manufactures devices featuring Windows Mobile. Palm’s webOS is believed by many to be a serious contender to Apple’s iPhone OS, but the lack of traction with Palm’s current Pre and Pixi offerings have thus far barely made a dent.Palm, founded in 1992, is the company that practically paved the road for Apple and others to swoop in with their mobile devices, first with electronic organizers called PalmPilot. After being practically on their deathbed in recent years, Palm was saved thanks to Elevation Partners LP, a firm that includes the likes of U2 singer Bono among their ranks. Elevation currently owns 30 percent of the company.For all their technological achievements and good will in the last year, Palm’s stock has been taking a hammering. Among the other companies believed to have an interest in the company are Dell, who is stepping back into the smartphone trenches this year with a new Android-based device.A large degree of Palm’s revival last year has been credited to Jon Rubinstein, the current CEO of Palm and former Apple executive who previously oversaw the company’s iPod division.
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