HP To Acquire ArcSight For 1.5 Billion 44
An anonymous reader writes "HP and ArcSight have signed a definitive agreement for HP to acquire ArcSight, a security and compliance management company, for $43.50 per share, or an enterprise value of $1.5 billion. The acquisition will be conducted by means of a cash tender offer for all of ArcSight's outstanding shares of common stock. The closing of the acquisition, which is subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to occur by the end of the calendar year."
Wow (Score:3, Informative)
Wow. 3Par and now ArcSight? They are going to need to call a credit counseling company after this shopping binge! :D
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Ah, so it's four companies becoming one company. Even better! Let's keep consolidating companies until we have One Big Company!
Except I doubt that One Big Company will have enough jobs for us all.
We hear all the Tea Party shinola about how "government's getting too big" while there's a swelling, metastasizing transnational blob in their back yard eating anything that moves.
It's going to get interesting when they figure out who the real enemy is.
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The tea party are pawns of the corporate feudal society. They are deceived into seeking to weaken the government so that there are no checks or balances on the power possessed by the owner class.
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It's going to get interesting when they figure out who the real enemy is.
Do not hold your breath. They aren't so stupid that they can't figure it out. The problem is that they do not want to figure it out. They would rather continue believing that the companies that gave gramps the swell life he had in 1960 would do so again if only they were not taxed to death by that Kenyan socialist president. It hurts to actually realize that the leaders they trust have sold them out, that those jobs are now long gone (offshore), and that life is unlikely to ever be that good again.
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Wow. 3Par and now ArcSight? They are going to need to call a credit counseling company after this shopping binge! :D
Actually, now is a good time to buy! The current recession has depressed prices throughout the tech sector (well, and in almost every other sector as well), so it makes good business sense for HP to use the opportunity to diversify by purchasing smaller companies that have already gained some traction in niche markets.
Assuming, of course, that HP has enough liquid assets to cover the purchases.
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Sure why not? Why do we need so many different companies anyway?
Wouldn't it be better if we bought our goods and services from just two or three companies?
And those people at 3Par and ArcSight who will almost certainly lose jobs (shedding jobs is always part of this sort of takeover) didn't need to be working anyway.
It would have been nice if HP would have put a little of the billions they spent buying up their supply chain and/or competitors into paying dividends to their shareh
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My issue is not with whether or not it will boost HP's bottom line.
My concern is that it's contributing to an overall social/economic decline in America, and will ultimately be very bad for consumers.
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ArcSight is crap. Not one single SmartConnecter I've used that they've created has worked right, with the exception of the CEF connector, which I've used to replace their half assed implementations. Even their Logger appliance doesn't work right. I wouldn't recommend ArcSight to ANYONE.
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I haven't done the actual math but I think it would be either 2 or 1 depending on whether you started with an odd or even number of companies... ;)
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My initial reactions where 3Par-who? Arc-who? Never heard of them until now. Must have been under a rock somewhere for sometime...
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*sigh*
HP will destroy them. What other products are out there these days? Anyone have any experience in other products? /has over a million dollars in this thing... does not want to be an HP customer.
Now, now, let's not be hasty. I'm sure that HP has learned from the whole "Itanium will be sooo much better than Alpha debacle."
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Arcsight makes a quality product, and while I am no fan of their licensing costs (they are ridiculous... cost per user, cost per processor, cost per agent, even more expensive cost for admin user...), I doubt HP will butcher the product. At most I see rebranding, and additional support for HP's other product line, but other than that, doubt much will change.
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I have used qradar as part of a DHS/USCert initiative. It was pretty, it did not scale so well when you have 12 major operational networks to monitor.
news for nerds = megacorp mergers? (Score:2)
...but thanks for the share price info. It's what I come to Slashdot for :-p
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I had to reach for my corporate bullshit dictionary when I saw "compliance management".
Obviously you can't just explain this term with mere text. You'll need to see the flowchart and powerpoint presentation for yourself,
Geek side of story? (Score:2)
I was hoping Slashdot would put the specific for this deal, like why is HP buying this company out? What is HPs long term goal for acquiring this company?
I have heard that it's a continuation of ex-CEO Hurd's vision for HP, but what exactly that vision is I have yet to hear. I mean, the closest I can get is vague quotes like "Together, HP and ArcSight will be well-positioned to secure even the most demanding environments." What exactly does that mean?
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It means more "Security by marketing".
HP's the only one taking the recession seriously (Score:5, Interesting)
In rough times, you have to diversify and try to slide into new markets to keep making money. Let's face it, the dollar isn't getting any stronger anytime soon. HP's taking their cash reserves and investing it now instead of watching their net worth dwindle. HP's pushing themselves to be the new industry leader in all tech sectors, not just their traditional markets.
I think in the long run, companies like Dell will look back and wonder why they didn't do what HP's currently doing. Now's the time to buy and innovate, not be conservative and limit your market strategy.
Yep. (Score:1)
In the long run, HP will be selling all this crap off to make itself look better to Wall St. and we'll all be talking about how HP went off the rails right around the time they forced Hurd out.
It could be: GE went through this. Now, GE makes about 2/3rds of their money from finance. Time Warner/AOL is another example.
Many times these huge corps go apeshit with their cash buying things up only to have the purchases be detrimental to their performance. They do it mostly just to do something - anything with their cash and the purchases may not be appropriate. Right now, there's a huge push in the computer industry to make acquisitions - it's a mature commodity business now and the only way to grow
Weak dollar? (Score:3, Interesting)
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Yea I dunno. The dollar is pretty weak at the moment. 1.5 billion is a lot of money to be spending in a rescession... unless you are getting a very good deal.
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Re:HP's the only one taking the recession seriousl (Score:4, Insightful)
In rough times, you have to diversify and try to slide into new markets to keep making money.
Yeah, I'd do that except the Bush/Obama bailouts took all my money, leaving it in the hands of the corporate sector to go on a buying spree because stock prices tanked wiping out my 401K.
As it happens, I'm not an American, so none of that is true, but I can't help but think it's how a lot of Americans must feel: the government socialized the risk of corporations that are already heavily protected from liability by the Nanny State's special treatment of them under the various Companies Acts, leaving the corporate sector flush with cash at a time of (arguably) relatively low stock valuations.
Ergo: merger mania! Acquisitions for all! Well, at least for all who are hiding behind the skirts of the Nanny State, rather than living within their means and struggling to get by. Just remember: helping out those folks would be Socialism!
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Yeah, I'd do that except the Bush/Obama bailouts took all my money, leaving it in the hands of the corporate sector to go on a buying spree because stock prices tanked wiping out my 401K.
I disagree with this sentiment, by the time the bailouts happened the damage had already been done. A lot of the companies bailed out really would have caused serious damage to national and world economies had they been allowed to fail. The mistake wasn't bailing them out, it was letting them get so large and powerful that their failure would spell doom for global economies.
It would be like complaining about the government using your tax dollars to repair a huge dam that is upriver from your town. The pr
If you don't know what to do ... merge or aquire! (Score:3, Interesting)
This seems to be the business strategy now. When the shit hits the fan, you'll be long gone on your golden parachute.
To All ArcSight Employees reading this: (Score:3, Informative)
RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!
Run away as fast as you can as soon as you can!
Sincerely,
-A former EDSer, now trying to leave HP
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