Thursday, August 14, 2003

This Would Be A Big Mistake I came across this article through the magic of my RSS feed (thank you Chris Pirillo) that just seems so far off the mark: Wired: Disney or Sony should buy Apple. A Wired magazine opinion piece by Contributing Editor Josh McHugh says that Disney or Sony should buy Apple. Of course, rumors of this nature pop up every few months, but McHugh feels rumor should become reality. Why? Because although "every few years, Apple Computer consistently comes out of the blue with products that alter the trajectory of the technology business and leave observers rubbing their eyes in amazement," the company "clutches a meager 3 percent of the computer market." [MacCentral] Apple is an innovator because it's not like these large companies. IMHO if Apple were to be swallowed up as just another division of Disney or Sony it would not enjoy Most Favored Status for long. Soon enough the corporate bean counters would be pressuring Apple's officers to better the bottom line. That would lead Apple to becoming nothing more than just another computer manufacturer. Innovation would be replaced by a playing it safe mentality and a focus on the immediate return, rather than creating the future. Just take a look at the poor state of Disneyland, once the crown jewel in Disney's empire. Now it's just a shadow of its former self and Tomorrowland is virtually non-existent. And that's what was once considered to be a forward thinking company. But that's just my opinion. I could be wrong. Not likely though. 8:28:43 PM

SCO's Real Agenda The Salt Lake Tribune reports that SCO Group executives have sold about 119,000 shares of their company since it filed a lawsuit against IBM in March and the stock price increased more than fourfold.  Chief Financial Officer Robert Bench began the $1.2 million in executive share sales four days after Lindon -based SCO filed its lawsuit against Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM on March 6. Before Bench's sale, SCO insiders had not sold shares in more than a year, according to the Washington Service, a firm that tracks insider transactions. Isn't it abundantly clear what's going on here? First, buy up a floundering company. Next pump up the stock price with a bogus claim that unidentified portions of the Linux code infringe on unidentified portions of SCO's intellectual property in Unix. Sue IBM and attempt to extort "license fees" from Linux end users. Then, after the price of the company's shares rise because of investor stupidity, cash out for a quick killing. I mean, ask yourself, if their lawsuit had real merit would they be dumping the stock? Of course not. This crap is nothing but racketeering. I hope the SEC does an Enron on the heads of these bastards. 1:00:15 AM