Acer Buys Gateway

Acer to buy PC maker Gateway
Deal will create third largest vendor of personal computers

Los Angeles(Associated Press):
Taiwan-based Acer Inc. will acquire Gateway Inc. for $710 million in a deal designed to give the long-struggling U.S. computer maker the size it needs to compete against larger players, the companies announced Monday.

The deal will push the combined company past China’s Lenovo Group Ltd. to become the world’s third-largest vendor of personal computers, behind Hewlett-Packard Co. and Dell Inc.

More from MSNBC: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20458321/
More from The Financial Times http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20464267/

This deal gives ACER three major PC brands: Acer, Gateway and eMachines.
update: See bottom of post....make that FOUR major brands.
Gateway purchased Packard Bell this morning before the Acer purchase. It was all part of the deal. Huge.

On Edit: Brand new from PC WORLD: "Analysis: The Impact of the Acer-Gateway Merger"
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,136436-c,mergersacquisitions/article.html

More: "U.S. retail consumers could begin to see great deals on PC purchases as the market gets more competitive."
from IDG via PC WORLD:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,136437-c,mergersacquisitions/article.html

More: "Acer-Gateway Deal Poses Threat To Lenovo, Other PC Makers"
from Information Week
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=201802505

On Edit: "Acer Buys, Will Preserve Gateway, eMachines Brands"
from PC Magazine
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2176056,00.asp

Now on the ACER website. He's their official word on the deal:
http://us.acer.com/acereuro/page92....=en&ctx3=-1&ctx4=United States&crc=3207083074

More: "What Acer's Gateway Gobble Means"
Analysys from PC Magazine editor, Lance Ulanoff:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2176033,00.asp

On Edit:
BIGGER THAN FIRST THOUGHT:
This little bit of news was almost overlooked in the hoopla over the Acer-Gateway merger. This morning, before the afternoon announcement from Acer, Gateway purchased Packard Bell computers! Packard Bell is a giant in the Chinese marketplace. They are no longer sold in the USA. So, Acer now owns FOUR major computer brands: Acer, Gateway, eMachines and Packard Bell.
from Forbes Magazine:
http://www.forbes.com/markets/feeds/afx/2007/08/27/afx4055391.html

 

Whatever happened to IBM? Doesn't anyone buy PCs from them anymore?

 

Ummm, no.

That business was sold to Lenovo.

Blue

 

I have updated/edited the original post with links to some new articles of analysis from computer trade and consumer magazines. Some interesting observations. I also updated to include a link to a story about the early morning, almost-missed surprise, that Gateway bought Packard Bell before their purchase by Acer. It was all a well-planned, tightly held secret deal that positions Acer to be a giant in consumer PCs throughout the world.

 

I have not owned either Acer or Gateway. However, I have the impression that both are prone to trouble more that Toshiba, Sony, Dell, HP, and Lenovo.

There have been some good deals on Acer recently.

Regards,
Jerry