Netscape's Work Culture"It took Microsoft and Oracle 11 years to reach the size Netscape reached in 3 years, both in terms of revenues and the number of employees. Which is just cosmically fast growth." - Marc Andreessen, Co-founder, Netscape. "Netscape's relaxed work environment drives up productivity and creativity. Because there aren't layers of management and policies to work through, Netscape can turn out products in a month." - Patrick O'Hare, Manager (Internal Human Resources Web Site), Netscape. IntroductionOn November 24, 1998, America Online1 (AOL) announced the acquisition of Netscape Communications (Netscape), a leading Internet browser company, for $10 billion in an all-stock transaction. With this acquisition, AOL got control over Netscape's three different businesses – Netcenter portal, Netscape browser software and a B2B e-commerce software development division.
However, a certain section of analysts doubted whether AOL's management would accept Netscape's casual and independent culture. Moreover, they were worried that this deal may lead to a reduction in Netscape's workforce, the key strength of the company.
1] Based in Dulles, Va., USA, AOL is the world's largest online services provider and a leader in interactive services, Web brands, Internet technologies, and e-commerce services. |
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