Deal Information technology company Oracle Corp. said yesterday it is buying Sun Microsystems in a cash deal it valued at $7.4 billion US after IBM abandoned its bid to buy the networking equipment maker.
Oracle will buy Sun shares for $9.50 US each. The price represents a 42 per cent premium to Sun’s Friday closing stock price of $6.69. IBM had offered to buy Sun for $9.40 per share, but talks fell apart this month. Sun balked at the price and cancelled IBM’s exclusive negotiating rights, leading IBM to withdraw its offer.
Sun, which invented the Java programming language, has been reluctant to sacrifice its independence, even as it reports big losses. Despite billions in sales the company has not been able to turn a consistent profit, losing $1.9 billion in the same period.
