Posted by : bpburnwal on Oct 14, 2003 - 11:09 AM General

Oracle Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Larry Ellison on Monday ruled out making a bid to buy ailing Sun Microsystems, run by his friend Scott McNealy. But Ellison acknowledged considering the idea.
"I thought about it," Ellison said in response to a question during Oracle's annual shareholder meeting at company headquarters in Redwood Shores. "I think it would be a bad idea. I don't think Oracle should go into the hardware business. But we have thought about it."

Server maker Sun has suffered more than many tech companies during the downturn, with its stock price down to $3.54 a share Monday, giving the Santa Clara company a market value of about $11.5 billion.

Oracle is pursuing a hostile takeover of rival software maker PeopleSoft of Pleasanton, a deal currently valued at $7.5 billion. The bid for PeopleSoft is awaiting an antitrust ruling from the Justice Department.

A Sun spokesman said he had not heard about Ellison's remarks but said the company as a rule does not comment on rumors or speculation.

"Oracle continues to be one of our best partners," said Michael Hakkert, a Sun spokesman. "We continue to look for business opportunities where we can find them."

Oracle has been making rumblings about acquiring other companies for several months now. Ellison reiterated that goal Monday, though he did not list any targets.

"As the industry matures and we grow larger and larger, we will have to grow through a combination of developing new products and buying other companies," Ellison said.

The Oracle shareholder conference was relatively sedate compared with those of other tech companies where angry shareholders have attempted to pass new corporate governance measures. A shareholder proposal requesting that Oracle be more vigilant about workers' rights in its operations in China failed by a wide margin.

Ellison did offer some thoughts on Arnold Schwarzenegger, California's governor-elect:

"I'd just like to say for the record, `Commando' is one of my favorite movies," Ellison said. "And his personality and policies are a substantial improvement over the previous governor."

Oracle was caught up in controversy over a software contract with the state of California during Gov. Gray Davis' administration. The contract was canceled, and Oracle was cleared of any wrongdoing.

Ellison's advice for the new governor?

"I'd like to see one more `Terminator' movie."