Abstract

This is the second of a four-case series. On 9 September 2004, a Federal Judge ruled that Oracle could pursue its PeopleSoft deal. With the Justice Department's case out of the way, Oracle seems all set to move forward in its acquisition plans. However, a decision is still awaited from the European Union's antitrust authorities. The Federal Judge has noted that the government has failed to prove that competition will be reduced because of the deal. Meanwhile, PeopleSoft has launched a customer assurance programme (CAP), which will make Oracle's acquisition of PeopleSoft more expensive (to the tune of $2 billion). PeopleSoft customers will be paid more than five times the cost of their software applications license if someone acquires PeopleSoft and discontinues its products. Despite all these doubts, Oracle has every reason to celebrate the Federal Judge's ruling. This part of the case discusses the events from July 2004 to September 2004.

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

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Keywords

Oracle, PeopleSoft, SAP, Business services market, IT industry, Microsoft, Hostile takeover, White knight, European Commission, Justice Department, Merger, Consolidation, JD Edwards, Product line, Customer assurance programme (CAP)