And then there were 4 – HP kills webOS

August 18, 2011 | By Surur

The wires are buzzing with the news that HP is set to end all sales and further development of webOS.

The struggling OS never really caught on and has suffered the recent ignominity of selling less than 10% of its Touchpad stock at Bestbuy.

HP is rumoured to be planning to divest itself of it’s low-margin PC business and webOS may have been a casualty of the process.

The move leaves Windows Phone 7 as the uncontested 4 th mobile OS, with RIM, Android and the iOS ahead.

See the full HP press release after the break.

HP Confirms Discussions with Autonomy Corporation plc Regarding Possible Business Combination; Makes Other Announcements

PALO ALTO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–HP (NYSE: HPQ) today commented on the recent announcement by Autonomy Corporation plc (LSE: AU.L). HP confirms that it is in discussions with Autonomy regarding a possible offer for the company.

HP also reported that it plans to announce that its board of directors has authorized the exploration of strategic alternatives for its Personal Systems Group (PSG). HP will consider a broad range of options that may include, among others, a full or partial separation of PSG from HP through a spin-off or other transaction.

In addition, HP reported that it plans to announce that it will discontinue operations for webOS devices, specifically the TouchPad and webOS phones. HP will continue to explore options to optimize the value of webOS software going forward.

HP today announced preliminary results for the third fiscal quarter 2011, with revenue of $31.2 billion compared with $30.7 billion one year ago.

In the third quarter, preliminary GAAP diluted earnings per share (EPS) was $0.93 and non-GAAP diluted EPS was $1.10, compared with third quarter fiscal 2010 GAAP diluted EPS of $0.75 and non-GAAP diluted EPS of $1.08. Non-GAAP diluted EPS estimates exclude after-tax costs related primarily to the amortization of purchased intangible assets of approximately $0.17 per share and $0.33 per share in the third quarter of fiscal 2011 and fiscal 2010, respectively.

For the fourth fiscal quarter of 2011, HP estimates revenue of approximately $32.1 billion to $32.5 billion, GAAP diluted EPS in the range of $0.44 to $0.55, and non-GAAP diluted EPS in the range of $1.12 to $1.16. Non-GAAP diluted EPS guidance excludes after-tax costs of approximately $0.61 to $0.68 per share, related primarily to restructuring and shutdown costs associated with webOS devices, the amortization and impairment of purchased intangibles, restructuring charges and acquisition-related charges.

HP estimates full-year FY11 revenue will be approximately $127.2 billion to $127.6 billion, down from its previous estimate of $129 billion to $130 billion. FY11 GAAP diluted EPS is expected to be in the range of $3.59 to $3.70, down from its previous estimate of at least $4.27, and FY11 non-GAAP diluted EPS is expected to be in the range of $4.82 to $4.86, down from its previous estimate of at least $5.00. FY11 non-GAAP diluted EPS estimates exclude after-tax costs of approximately $1.16 to 1.23 per share, related primarily to restructuring and shutdown costs associated with webOS devices, the amortization and impairment of purchased intangibles, restructuring charges and acquisition-related charges.

HP will host a conference call with the financial community today at 2 p.m. PT / 5 p.m. ET to discuss these announcements well as HP’s third quarter 2011 financial results. The call is accessible via an audio webcast atwww.hp.com/investor/2011q3webcast.

About Surur

Site Admin and Windows Phone enthusiast, he has been using Windows Mobile devices since before they were called PocketPC’s. He is currently sporting a HTC 7 Trophy.

http://www.searingarrow.com AlienSix

Wow, didnt see that coming

Anonymous

RIM is next

http://www.searingarrow.com AlienSix

Wouldnt be that surprised
http://vremixed.com VRemixed

Mmm…
http://twitter.com/oslicek David Petrla

Sure, RIM will discontinue its line of phones and tablet and concentrate on their other business activities.
http://twitter.com/brianchau Brian Chau

How about another PC company like Lenovo or so buy RIM to try their luck. Then one year later realises that it is not fun and kill off RIM!

Anonymous

I believe the actual statment was to discontinue it’s line of webOS devices. This is not suprising, at least not to me, given that they made a statement a couple of months ago that they were willing to license the webOS operating system.

So basically, they will still own webOS, but they are open to oem ‘takers’! Pretty good timing with regards to the announcement as it gives another option to HTC, Samsung, and LG, among others. However, I do think that HP was looking for an oem to make webOS their primary OS (not sure if this means sole OS) or something similar to how Nokia is doing with WP.

I think it is good news for webOS fans! Great OS, but let’s face it, the form factor of the Pre as the only form factor – it just can’t work and hasn’t worked, as evidenced by the sales. Yes, it works for the iPhone, but the Pre form factor just wasn’t eye catching enough. Looks matter.

Anonymous

And guess what matter even more than looks – marketing! Which both Palm and HP sucks at.
http://twitter.com/oslicek David Petrla

So sane company would license it.

Anonymous

thats really sad. webos was damn fine, my number two
http://www.facebook.com/people/Jon-Rob/2052352 Jon Rob

This makes me sooooooooooo sad. I loved my palm pre the hardware was just sucky. Way ahead of its time.

Anonymous

I agree, I bought a Palm Pre from AT&T immediately as they became available on that network. While it was simply beautiful (still more beautiful than WP7 in some areas), it was hobbles by bad hardware. I remember dialing phone numbers and how it would stutter dialing a number – can you imagine the most primitive function of a phone being done so poorly?

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jon-Rob/2052352 Jon Rob

Open-source it HP let it run wild.

Mike P

What HP should do is form a partnership with Samsung. They seem to be reluctant to buy software!

And they are slowly reconsidering their options with Googles Moto move.

I say! Samsung buy HP web OS….

That would allow Samsung to strengthen Bada/webOS whilst also having the option of doing more WP7 and Android…

http://twitter.com/brianchau Brian Chau

Don’t agree. Samsung should stay focus on its hardware. It is not a software company.Very often big companies like to try this or that in the name of diversification. How many actually succeed? CEOs making bad decision generally can stay on. It is the employees who get the sack.

Mike P

I didn’t mean it in the way of taking over webOS. Samsung is open right now to mergers and acquisitions. They just pointed out 2 days ago that they wouldn’t mind buying more software expertise. And to be quite honest. They have already just hired that guy that made the CyanogenMod for Android.

“(The company) must strengthen the competitiveness of its information
technology, secure more human resources and also more actively seek
mergers and acquisitions,” Lee said, according to a report from South
Korea’s Yonhap News Agency. “We must pay attention to
the fact that IT power is moving away from hardware companies such as
Samsung to software companies.”

I believe Samsung should buy the expertise patents etc from HP.. it would help them strengthen their engineers. (Lord knows that they need it)
Read more: Samsung seeks deals to expand software reach – FierceWireless http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/samsung-seeks-deals-expand-software-reach/2011-08-17#ixzz1VQIGDfjE
Subscribe: http://www.fiercewireless.com/signup?sourceform=Viral-Tynt-FierceWireless-FierceWireless
Anonymous

They may not have been good at software, but they were buying the IP and its workforce. Samsung missed an opportunity here to have purchased the requisite IP that they see they need now! They are ideally placed to have both the desire and the strategic capability to have pushed WebOS to international success!

HP? Pttew!!

Anonymous

There’s actually 5. Don’t forget Bada from Samsung..which according to Gartner has a higher percentage of market share than Windows Phone 7.

Anonymous

That’s because they’re selling it on dumbphone-like phones. In that case we should also count BREW.
http://twitter.com/oslicek David Petrla

Yes, it probably really has, but it doesn’t mean much. Samsung uses it on its low-end smartphones. And there were no low-end Windows phones yet.
Anonymous

If we are going to count Bada, why not Nokia S40 and a wide range of other embedded operating systems?

http://www.facebook.com/people/Milad-Bazzaz/100000479683479 Milad Bazzaz

Bada has no ecosystem, not really a fast development pace or a lot of supporters…

Samsung could take crap and make it have market share just because they sell that many devices.

WebOS was actually overrated. It lacks a LOT OF simple stuff…WebOS 2.0 still lacks about a billion of things I need on my phone. Sorry, it would have never been an option for me. I think the idea to kill it is right.
Anonymous

I don’t think anyone would want to license Web OS now, that would be crazy. Microsoft should hurry and buy the Palm patents from HP.

Anonymous

Dont think HP will sell. Notice, they shut down production. That’s scrapping, not primping for sale!

Anonymous

Holy Shit! I really didn’t see this coming – well, certainly not so soon. Again, proof that the best products don’t necessarily win – the winners are those who can move the swiftest and sell you a rock from your own backyard while convincing you it’s from Jupiter.

Anonymous

can i steal you comment and post it all over the web. It deserves it.

Anonymous

Permission granted

http://pulse.yahoo.com/_CR5L6LQCROQXRGA6LHNADJRVGY Aman Singh

Best damn comment I have read in a while!!!!!
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_CR5L6LQCROQXRGA6LHNADJRVGY Aman Singh

Best damn comment I have read in a while!!!!!

Anonymous

I am just curious if that Verizon CTO moron will still hype WebOS over WP7.
http://fxfp.com/ Alex F.

Wow, that was unexpected! But frankly, I’m rather glad.
http://fxfp.com/ Alex F.

Wow, that was unexpected! But frankly, I’m rather glad.
Anonymous

This is wise on HP’s part. HP bought Palm for $1.2B, that was dumb, but 1.2B is pocket money for HP, it is a nice science project. Then I hear someone bought Motorola for $12B, that’s not pocket momey.

A few Microsoft partners get bored, trying new things:

Intel: MeeGo
HP: WebOS
HTC/Samsung: Android, on going
Motorola: Android. Gone

Anonymous

For Intel and HP it may have been a new foray (undetermined / failed), but for HTC it underlies their whole profitability! Whilst for Samsung it contributes heavily to a highly regard division!

J A

I saw this coming when Palm still owned WebOS and when HP announced purchasing Palm WebOS. I further predict that Android products and iPod/iPad/iPhone will also see a downward market share in the near future as the Windows ecosystem will certainly shine Windows Phone through all the current impulsive tech smog. No need to talk about RIM/Blackberry anyway, they are already dead.

Anonymous

To me, all of this translate to is one word: “uncommitted”. This is one area where few people realize is Microsoft’s greatest strength. They’ll keep at a product, tweaking, improving, renaming for 20yrs or more until they make it successful. Few companies have the luxury to achieve this, particularly because of Microsoft’s traditionally unchallenged virtual monopoly on Server and PC OSs and their enterprise software. Watch and see, Microsoft is going to go at this mobile market until they’ve exhausted all others, either that, or they just hang it up and buy out the competition.

Anonymous

If it’s a main Trunk of it’s own, then yes. Otherwise, they do allow branches to wither and die!

I also forsee (for the next 3 -5 years) that three main O.S Ecosystems will be duking it out!

Anonymous

Since they looking to ‘spin off’ PC business (PSG group), I wonder how many Windows boxes they sell and if they sell more of them that the other PC oems? This would, defacto, adversely affect the volume of the Windows OS being sold, yes? Microsoft should make some kind of move here….

http://www.flavors.me/fludlyt Fludlyt

It will be interesting to see how Microsoft reacts to this if HP do actually spin off their PC business.
Anonymous

It may be low-margin, and difficult, but it is still profitable (in patents, if nothing else. Remember they were one of the main producers of Microsofts Windows Tablets!) See IBMs sale of its PC business to Lenovo for a divesture example.

http://twitter.com/danrivhor Daniel Rivero Horie

Wow, and I was planning to buy a webos tablet for our business… Everything points that I’ll have to wait for Windows 8

Anonymous

That’s what I’m waiting for!

Anonymous

I as well

Anonymous

This was a missed opportunity for many of the Major players in the Mobile market to have acquired a fully functional, revamped, Modern O.S. that they could have carried forwards. Instead it went to the Graveyard of Acquisitions, HP. The company that if you gave them a real live Alchemists stone for producing Gold, will inevitably be producing Lead within a few months!

Even if you’ve never used it or handled one (which I haven’t) you should still mourn the loss of the company (Palm), its (unused) ideas, and it’s Mobile O.S. (which if kept inhouse, may never see the light of consumers eyes again, irrespective of whatever HP promises)
Anonymous

I never really tried or got into WebOs but they definitely made some inroads and waves with their OS and definitely had a nice cult of customers. I wonder if they hold any patents that would help/hurt the Android war? Who I really think about though are all the employees who invented and worked and loved the OS only to have it butchered by HP. Hopefully some of those brains will move over to Microsoft and help create Windows 8.
What a butchering waste of everything corporate America has done once again.
Never work overtime or salary for free kids. They screw you everytime.
Anonymous

Here’s a good one; if HTC acquired the hp/palm operating system it could rebrand as SenseOS!
Anonymous

HTC Should’ve bought WEB OS when the deal was going on. You tell me you release this nice OS on the Same Crop of Phones it originally released with? A TP2/Arrive/Epic4G type of device with webOS would’ve probably sold greatly.
http://profiles.yahoo.com/u/CW3SETFCKRB5NRLX5QZK3EMRWY Joe

And the pre3 essentially id dead before release.