Palm Seeks Chinese Suitor As It Goes On Sale – Report

Following yesterday’s reports suggesting Palm has put itself up for sale comes more news on the company’s attempt to find a new friend.

Chinea’s Huawei Technologies has been approached by an investment bank on behalf of Palm for preliminary acquisition talks, but discussions have not yet moved forward.

Huawei Technologies isn’t a household name, but it has become the world’s second-biggest telecoms equipment company after Ericsson. And that lack of a household name could be the benefit it gains from buying a well-known brand such as Palm.

One of the pioneers in PDA and smartphone tech, Palm held a strong early market advantage, but lost its way somewhat in the early 2000’s. Attempts to galvanize itself failed as it split into an OS and a hardware group, now the company has seemingly agreed its time to quit the game.

Palm’s attempt to befriend the Chinese firm has not been confirmed by the potential suitor, who only confesses to always being “open to consider opportunities that will further enhance its business development.”

Palm’s stock has tumbled 69 per cent in the past six months as investors consider the company’s declining marketshare. Reuters reports any buyer may pay up to $1 billion.

Huawei Technologies could also profit from the deal because it would bring it an OS it could use in products developed to take advantage of its existing low cost manufacturing base.

Other potential buyers could include HTC, Dell, Microsoft, or Nokia. As the battle for the smartphone market intensifies, other players may perhaps pounce on Palm, if only to control its patent portfolio.

As Reported By: Reuters