Mergers, Acquisitions and Takeovers Case Study

Sun's Acquisition of Storagetek

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Abstract:
Sun Microsystems had been struggling hard to manage its operations, ever since it was struck by the dotcom bust. By the end of fiscal year June 2004, Sun had revenues of $11.2 billion. Its hardware business was stumbling due to intense competitive pressures from IBM, Hewlett Packard and Dell. Further, its Solaris operating system struggled against Linux, Windows and UNIX. In the new business scenario, storage emerged as one prominent area where an increasing number of companies consolidated themselves to seek competitive leverage. The rapid digitization of information, the expansion of the Internet, the increasing business needs for data storage and security, along with the new regulatory environments, collectively pushed the demand for storage. The merger statement issued by Sun, underlined the complementary product and service profiles of the two companies. This case provides a holistic understanding of Sun’s product profiles, the difficulties it faced in the post dotcom era and the rationale behind the acquisition of Storagetek.

Pedagogical Objectives:

• To discuss the product portfolio of Sun Microsystems
• To discuss the difficulties the company faced in the post dotcom era
• To discuss the synergies and challenges behind the acquisition of Storagetek.

Keywords : Mergers,Acquisitions,Alliances Case Study;Sun Microsystems; Storagetek; Storage; Solaris; Java; Jini; Network computing; IBM; Hewlett Packard; Virtualisation; Dell; Jiro; Operating System; Workstation; Processor

Contents : 
Sun’s Corporate History
Following A Vertical Business Model
“Network Is The Computer”
The Dotcom Bubble And Its Aftermath
The Competitive Business Scenario And The Changing Market
New Horizons – Sun Rising On Storagetek
A Time Honored Name In Storage Solutions
The Rationale Of The Merger