Today: HP CEO Leo Apotheker reveals his plans for the techpioneer in an interview with Bloomberg News. (And like otherCalifornians, he has learned to say "awesome" and "cool.") Plus:Gmail and Foursquare changes. And: Will tech rescue California'seconomy?
Leo's 'awesome' plan for HP
Leo Apotheker -- the new CEO of Palo Alto tech pioneer Hewlett-Packard -- has been touring the globe to meet HP's employees, buthe's also putting down roots in Silicon Valley. According to aninterview today with Bloomberg News, Apotheker and his wife arekeeping their home in Paris, but they've also bought a $7 millionmansion in Atherton.
"I consider myself a Californian now," Apotheker told Bloomberg."I bought a house in California -- I can even say 'awesome' and'cool.' "
According to the profile, Apotheker said "HP has lost its soul"after rounds of cost cutting under previous CEO Mark Hurd -- who wasousted last year by HP's board after an investigation into sexualharassment allegations found evidence he submitted incorrect expensereports. (Hurd, you might recall, landed on his feet as co-president of an HP rival, acquisitive Redwood City tech giantOracle.)
Apotheker -- the former CEO of German business software giant SAP(another Oracle rival) -- intends to rebuild HP by acquiringsoftware companies -- although he said he has "no interest" inbuying SAP or San Francisco-based Salesforce.com (yet another Oraclerival), which both emphasize applications for businesses rather thanconsumers.
Apotheker also revealed that HP -- a maker of personal computersrunning Microsoft's Windows operating system -- intends to installwebOS -- the software platform HP acquired in its $1.2 billionpurchase last year of Palm -- on every PC it sells. That could helpHP stand out from other PC makers. "You create a massive platform,"Apotheker told Bloomberg.
Finally, perhaps shifting his company back to the fabled "HPWay," Apotheker promised to encourage HP's employees -- especiallyengineers -- to share ideas between product groups. "You don'tmandate innovation," he told Bloomberg. "People need to be a littlemore empowered in this place."
Of course, you really should read the entire Bloomberg report.
HP stock, by the way, finished regular trading today at $42.05,down 35 cents, or 0.8 percent, from Tuesday's closing price. (Othertech stocks dropped today, too, on Wall Street.)
Top tech headlines
$480M Silicon Valley storage deal: NetApp -- the Sunnyvale datastorage company -- intends to buy the Engenio external storagesystems business from Milpitas chip developer LSI for $480 millionin cash, the two companies announced this afternoon.
"With Engenio we will have a strategic storage platform tocapitalize on new, high-growth opportunities that we don't currentlyreach," NetApp CEO Tom Georgens said in a news release announcingthe deal.
LSI CEO Abhi Talwalkar, meanwhile, said the deal will help hiscompany emphasize its core semiconductor businesses. "Going forwardas a pure-play storage and networking semiconductor company, webelieve we can accelerate the achievement of our current businessmodel, establish a richer business model target, and deliver greaterlong-term shareholder value," Talwalkar said.
LSI's board, meanwhile, has authorized a $750 million stockrepurchase program.
Google: The Mountain View Internet juggernaut has changed itsGmail e-mail service in a way that might help you better manage yourinbox.
In a blog post today, Google software engineer Stanley Chen saidGmail users can change their settings to turn on the new "smartlabels": "bulk" for mass mailings; "notifications" for e-mails suchas account statements and receipts; and "forums" for messages fromgroup lists.
"People get a lot of e-mail these days. "... We hope smart labelshelp you more effortlessly get through your inbox," Chen wrote.
The new smart labels follow Google's launch last year of a"Priority Inbox" that aims to sort e-mail by importance.
Foursquare: The location-based social networking service -- whichlets users "check in" and earn badges at bars, coffeehouses andother favorite spots -- has released the newest version of its appsfor the iPhone and devices running Google's Android operatingsystem.
Among the changes in version 3.0: a new "explore" tab. "For yearswe've wanted to build a recommendation engine for the real world byturning all the check-ins and tips we've seen from you, yourfriends, and the larger foursquare community into personalizedrecommendations," Foursquare founder Dennis Crowley wrote in a blogpost.
Foursquare also is making the service more merchant-friendly,with the ability to customize specials for different kinds of users,from loyal customers to "newbies."
The changes were revealed ahead of the yearly South by Southwestevent in Austin, where Foursquare was launched two years ago.
The economy
Here in the Golden State, we should expect a sluggish recoveryfrom the Great Recession over the next three years. Fortunately forSilicon Valley, though, the technology industry will be among thesectors that "generate more robust growth," according to the UCLAAnderson Forecast released today.
Despite the growth in such areas as tech, health care andeducation, California's jobless rate will stay at about 10.5 percentthrough 2011. "Job creation," senior economist Jerry Nickelsburgwrote, "though more rapid in late 2011 and in 2012 and 2013, willnot be fast enough to push the unemployment rate below double digitsuntil the start of 2013."
Nationwide, corporate spending on software and advances inwireless and cloud computing technology are bolstering the economy,according to Anderson Forecast senior economist David Shulman.However, the job market won't return to its 2008 peak level in thenext three years.
Shulman expects the Federal Reserve to start raising its keyshort-term interest rate -- now near zero -- in early 2012.
Silicon Valley tech stocks
Up: Oracle, Intel, VMware, Gilead Sciences.
Down: Apple, Google, Cisco Systems, HP, eBay, Juniper Networks.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index: Down 14.05, or 0.5percent, to 2,751.72.
The blue chip Dow Jones industrial average: Down 1.29 to12,213.09.
And the widely watched Standard & Poor's 500 index: Down 1.80, or0.1 percent, to 1,320.02.
Check in weekday afternoons for the 60-Second Business Break, asummary of news from Mercury News staff writers, The AssociatedPress, Bloomberg News and other wire services. Contact Frank Russellat 408-920-5876. Follow him at Twitter.com/mercspike.
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