PalmSource Posts Profit, Cuts Jobs
PalmSource today posted a slight profit, mainly due to the sale of the Palm trademark, and also announced a 16 percent reduction in the US workforce amid a reorganization of the Company's product development, administrative, marketing and sales organizations.
For its fiscal fourth quarter and year ended June 3, 2005. Revenue for the fourth quarter of 2005 was $17.3 million, including an early buyout of a licensee's future minimum royalty commitments for $1.5 million, as compared to $17.7 million reported in the year ago quarter. Gross margin was 93 percent as compared to 91 percent in the year ago quarter. GAAP net income was $18.3 million or $1.12 per share, as compared to a GAAP net loss of ($2.9) million or ($0.23) per share reported in the year ago quarter.
Non-GAAP net loss for the quarter was ($0.7) million or ($0.04) per share, as compared to non-GAAP net loss of ($0.6) million or ($0.05) per share in the year ago quarter. Non-GAAP net loss and loss per share for the fourth quarter of 2005 excluded the following:
- $26.7 million for a gain on the sale of assets (the Company's interest in Palm Trademark Holding Company, LLC) to palmOne, Inc.
- $2.7 million for restructuring charges related to the reorganization
- $2.5 million related to the severance package for the Company's former CEO
- $2.3 million for stock-based compensation expense
- $0.2 million for amortization of purchased intangible assets
GAAP EPS for the fourth quarter of 2005 was calculated using diluted shares outstanding of 16.3 million, while non-GAAP loss per share was calculated using basic shares outstanding of 15.9 million shares. GAAP and non-GAAP loss per share for the fourth quarter of 2004 were calculated using basic shares outstanding of 12.6 million shares.
Device Sales
Palm OS licensees reported shipping a total of approximately 1.1 million units during the quarter, of which 37 percent were smartphones and 63 percent were PDA's and other mobile handheld devices. This compares to a total of approximately 1.4 million units shipped in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2004, of which 18 percent were smartphones and 82 percent were PDA's and other mobile handheld devices.
"While we still face significant challenges over the next several quarters, we continue to move forward with our development efforts in the broader mobile phone market," said Patrick McVeigh, interim CEO. "We are committed to our transition to Linux-based platforms that deliver a great user experience."
Full-year Results
For fiscal year 2005, revenues were $71.9 million, as compared to $73.1 million in the prior year. GAAP net income for 2005 was $19.5 million or $1.28 per share, as compared to a net loss of ($15.2) million or ($1.40) per share in the prior year. Non-GAAP net income was $4.0 million or $0.26 per share, as compared to non-GAAP net income of $1.2 million or $0.10 in the prior year. GAAP and non-GAAP EPS for 2005 were calculated on a diluted basis using a weighted average of approximately 15.2 million shares. GAAP loss per share for 2004 was calculated using a weighted average of basic shares outstanding of 10.9 million shares. Non-GAAP EPS for 2004 was calculated on a diluted basis using a weighted average of 11.6 million shares.
Reorganization of Product Development, Administration and Sales and Marketing
PalmSource today also announced an internal reorganization of the Company's product development, administrative, marketing and sales organizations. As part of this reorganization, the Company plans to reduce its full-time head count by approximately 16 percent in the U.S. and has taken a $2.7 million restructuring charge in its fiscal fourth quarter of 2005, primarily related to employee severance arrangements. Over half of the head count reductions were middle and senior management positions, including three senior vice presidents. The Company expects annual salary savings of approximately $6.0 million in fiscal year 2006 related to the reorganization.
"This reorganization reflects the evolution of our business model, as we have taken action to tighten our focus over the next 12 months," said Jeanne Seeley, PalmSource's chief financial officer. "By streamlining our product development efforts and administrative functions, and combining our sales, marketing and business development activities, we not only expect to increase internal synergies between these groups, but we are also aligning our cost structure with the reality that we are in a new product development period."
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RE: Profit is a Good Thing.
Fish
RE: Profit is a Good Thing.
My question is this:
How can Ed's "Delight the Customer" mantra coexist with a "thriving" Treo market, a new category of Mobile Managers AND the legacy PDA lines (Zire & Tungsten) in the face of stafff eliminations?
Doesn't anyone remember what happened to Motorola back in '01 or so? They laid off so many engineers that they had a terrible time getting new product out to compete with the frenzied release schedule of the asian manufacturers & Nokia. In addition, what they did get out was buggy (the original V60 & V70 or the T720) b/c they didn't have the resources to properly test the handsets before releasing them onto the market P1-style.
RE: Profit is a Good Thing.
The original Palm split was a SHAM!
Evidence:
- The "split" wrote off millions in loans
- Tens of millions more were then generated with the overpriced IPO stock. Prices have subsequently plummeted, but investors paid the price
- The Palm name buyout basically burns up more (almost $30,000,000!) of investors' money by shuffling it back to PalmSource
- Looking at PalmSource's business plan, it seemed obvious from the start that they would never really be profitable as an independent company
- Since PalmSource was doomed to go bankrupt (within a year at current burn rates) it was only a matter of time before Palm/pa1mOne would be able to swoop in and buy back PalmSource for pennies on the dollar.
This is my theory and I can't prove it, but everything is already playing out EXACTLY as I said it would when the "split" was originally approved. Anyone willing to bet against me on the conclusion of final act in this (investors') tragedy?
TVoR
Sorry, but I couldn't resist coming back here to say "I told you so".
Challenge to my old buddy, Mike Cane: $100 dollar bet (loser sends $100 to the charity of the winner's choice). I say PalmSource gets bought out by Palm/pa1mOne before the end of Summer, 2006. Are you willing to take that (sucker) bet, Cane?
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Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
The Gekko/Reason/Cane crowd drown out good news from palmOne with bad news.
Celebrating good news from palmOne doesn't fit their alterior motives...
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
It was unsaid what "action" that would be.
I think the first post of this thread is spot on.
So...the question is...:
== What price to jump into PSRC awaiting the buyout!?
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/050630/earns_palmone.html?.v=9
and they're still selling plenty of PalmOS devices. I think viewing the splitting of Palm into PalmSource and PalmOne as being nothing but a sham is rather cynical. A collapse will mean little or no demand for PalmOS devices and that isn't true. I think the real problem with the split was that Palm made a mistake in coming up with a viable business plan for PalmSource - they overestimated how many companies would license Palm OS and the revenues they would have gotten from these licensees. Maybe they had hoped that new licenIsees would expand the PalmOS market into areas not covered by PalmOne and sadly that hasn't really happened.
If the strategy had worked out then maybe we would be seeing many more Palm OS devices. Sadly it hasn't and PalmSource is looking for a new direction in order to save itself. Companies are run by people and people make mistakes, the question is if and how you learn from them. After all, Microsoft for all its clout, has made mistakes but learnt from them - I remember when Bill Gates poo-pooed the significance of the internet in the early 90s but he quickly turned Microsoft around to make use of the opportunities it offered.
Just remember this quote from Sir Winston Churchill:
Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.
That applied to Churchill because he did make mistakes during the Second World War and it applies equally to Microsoft - just look at the early WinCE!
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"What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight � it�s the size of the fight in the dog" - Dwight D. Eisenhower
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/050630/earns_palmone.html?.v=9
and they're still selling plenty of PalmOS devices. I think viewing the splitting of Palm into PalmSource and PalmOne as being nothing but a sham is rather cynical. A collapse will mean little or no demand for PalmOS devices and that isn't true.
A platform collapses when it sells less and less licenses quarter after quarter. That's what is now happening. You can call the allegation of the "split" being a sham cynical if you like, but that's how businesses work in the real world. The goal is to make money - in ANY way possible. Fleecing eager stock investors is a great way to start if you know what you're doing. Palm's "split" showed sometimes you can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear - scores of millions were generated out of thin air. And that thin air is now returning to Vapors.
TVoR
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
A platform collapses when it sells less and less licenses quarter after quarter. That's what is now happening.
I guess I'm playing with semantics now but for me a collapse is when nothing is left or useable and this is not true for Palm OS. I guess the best indicator for a collapse is whether the total number of Palm OS devices sold each year enters a state of recent and sharp decline. I believe this is not the case, especially when you look at PalmOne's latest results.
You can call the allegation of the "split" being a sham cynical if you like but that's how businesses work in the real world.
Yea, real world businesses like Enron and Worldcom run by cynics, conmen (and maybe even cons!). Mercifully legitimate businesses tend not to fall into that category.
The goal is to make money - in ANY way possible
No, the goal is to continue making money in any legal way possible.
All businesses have their expenses and however much money you have, if you're not making money then you're losing it paying for your essential expenses. I think most businesses prefer an assured regular income to one-off, may never happen again payment. Besides, look at Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Larry Ellison, none of them have said "I've made my billion dollars, time to shut the company down".
Fleecing eager stock investors is a great way to start if you know what you're doing
Yea a great start with a quick end. Palmsource's and PalmOne's stock investors are mainly large corporate financial institutions. Institutions with great influence and deep pockets for legal fees should any company director be up to any wrongdoing with the company - remember as investors they own a stake in that company. Are you telling me that the PalmOne/Palmsource directors will risk being ruined by such institutions for the sake of a few million? If so then they must have money piled up in a tax haven with no extradition treaty with the US!
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"What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight � it�s the size of the fight in the dog" - Dwight D. Eisenhower
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
A platform collapses when it sells less and less licenses quarter after quarter. That's what is now happening.
I guess I'm playing with semantics now but for me a collapse is when nothing is left or useable and this is not true for Palm OS. I guess the best indicator for a collapse is whether the total number of Palm OS devices sold each year enters a state of recent and sharp decline. I believe this is not the case, especially when you look at PalmOne's latest results.
You can call the allegation of the "split" being a sham cynical if you like but that's how businesses work in the real world.
Yea, real world businesses like Enron and Worldcom run by cynics, conmen (and maybe even cons!). Mercifully legitimate businesses tend not to fall into that category.
The goal is to make money - in ANY way possible
No, the goal is to continue making money in any legal way possible.
All businesses have their expenses and however much money you have, if you're not making money then you're losing it paying for your essential expenses. I think most businesses prefer an assured regular income to one-off, may never happen again payment. Besides, look at Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Larry Ellison, none of them have said "I've made my billion dollars, time to shut the company down".
Fleecing eager stock investors is a great way to start if you know what you're doing
Yea a great start with a quick end. Palmsource's and PalmOne's stock investors are mainly large corporate financial institutions. Institutions with great influence and deep pockets for legal fees should any company director be up to any wrongdoing with the company - remember as investors they own a stake in that company. Are you telling me that the PalmOne/Palmsource directors will risk being ruined by such institutions for the sake of a few million? If so then they must have money piled up in a tax haven with no extradition treaty with the US!
CHiA, getting away with murder all boils down to whether or not you've planned it out well enough. Or if you could afford Johnnie Cochrane as your lawyer! ;-O
If Palm's split was all a carefully-orchestrated shell game there's NOTHING anyone could do about it now. The process has been completely transparent from the beginning and no one forced dumba$$ investors to buy the overvalued stock. Had they just read Palminfocenter they would not be sitting on a pile of worthless stock right now.
Surur posted the decline in shipping PalmOS devices from 2000 -> 2005. I didn't check this data myself but you can if you don't believe him. It would be in the (public) SEC filings. If these numbers are true, the platform is in worse shape than I thought. Palm's failure to position PalmOS as a mobile email solution for businesses is truly bizarre. A better quality Treo 650 (PLEASE fix the horrible quality control problems, Palm) + push email could generate sales of 1,000,000 Treos per quarter, QUADRUPLING Palm's profits! Instead, Palm putzed around long enough to allow Microsoft to come up with an essentially free alternate solution. PalmOS push email will now probably never get established.
The goal is to make money however you can as long as you don't get caught. I wonder how Nagel figures in on all this... Did he get cold feet, perchance?
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
Ummmm... I think most people know that, hengeem.
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
On top of that, the Tungsten 5 and LifeDrive have been duds. Without the Treo lineup, Palm would be screwed. Treos will probably account for well over 50% of Palm's profit by the end of this quarter. And I expect Palm will soon slash their PDA lineup to four models: Zire, TE², LifeDrive and T7.
Looks like it's time for this Voice to stop asking questions Palm doesn't want to hear being asked. I hope people like Mike Cane, hkklife, Foo Fighter, etc stick around to warn the flock when they're being fleeced...
TVoR
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
On top of that, the Tungsten 5 and LifeDrive have been duds. Without the Treo lineup, Palm would be screwed. Treos will probably account for well over 50% of Palm's profit by the end of this quarter. And I expect Palm will soon slash their PDA lineup to four models: Zire, TE�, LifeDrive and T7.
I find it ironic that you make this complaint and yet lecture us in earlier posts about how businesses work in the real world. A business spending money offering products nobody wants to buy will inevitably go out of business. If nobody wants PalmOS handhelds but everybody wants PalmOS smartphones then doesn't it make sense to make and sell PalmOS smartphones?
Life and the world are in a constant state of change. It's a question of adapting to your circumstances and doing what needs to be done for growth and survival, or biting the dust. I presume PalmOne and PalmSource are doing this in their focus on smartphones.
Nokia began life as a company selling paper and tyres; it eventually evolved into the giant telecoms company it is now. I presume it found was better at offering telecoms/electronics products than paper and so adapted accordingly.
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"What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight � it�s the size of the fight in the dog" - Dwight D. Eisenhower
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
On top of that, the Tungsten 5 and LifeDrive have been duds. Without the Treo lineup, Palm would be screwed. Treos will probably account for well over 50% of Palm's profit by the end of this quarter. And I expect Palm will soon slash their PDA lineup to four models: Zire, TE�, LifeDrive and T7.
I find it ironic that you make this complaint and yet lecture us in earlier posts about how businesses work in the real world. A business spending money offering products nobody wants to buy will inevitably go out of business. If nobody wants PalmOS handhelds but everybody wants PalmOS smartphones then doesn't it make sense to make and sell PalmOS smartphones?
Life and the world are in a constant state of change. It's a question of adapting to your circumstances and doing what needs to be done for growth and survival, or biting the dust. I presume PalmOne and PalmSource are doing this in their focus on smartphones.
Nokia began life as a company selling paper and tyres; it eventually evolved into the giant telecoms company it is now. I presume it found was better at offering telecoms/electronics products than paper and so adapted accordingly.
What exactly is your point? For the past two years I (and several others) have suggested that Palm needed to cut their traditional PDA lineup to three or (maximum) four traditional models and (most importantly) add a small, inexpensive smartphone in the formfactor of a Sony Ericsson T630. A "regular" tiny phone that just happened to run PalmOS would have been a HUGE success, would have revitalized the PalmOS platform and would have created a lot of interest from both carriers and Average Joes.
Instead, Palm kept churning out several different models - each with problems that would never get fixed - and kept pushing the uber-expensive, sloppily-made executive toy Treo 600/650. Not exactly the best way to get market share and improve PalmOS name recognition among the masses.
Wake up, Bubba. Your pants are down around your ankles again...
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
What exactly is your point? For the past two years I (and several others) have suggested that Palm needed to cut their traditional PDA lineup to three or (maximum) four traditional models
My point is PalmOne/PalmSource are doing what they can do. I don't understand your angst if PalmOne is reducing its PDA line and moving towards smartphones as you advocated in the past - sadly they seem to be companies that need to learn the hard way.
Wake up, Bubba. Your pants are down around your ankles again...
Voice_of_Reason, it's time you stopped breaking into my house just to peep at me sitting on the toilet!
There are laws against that kind of behaviour and people you can talk to who can help you stop it!
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"What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight � it�s the size of the fight in the dog" - Dwight D. Eisenhower
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
Angst? Get a clue, Bubba. Palm cutting their traditional PDA lineup to three models and adding a cheap smartphone would be A Good Thing. As long as doing this allows them to finally concentrate on QUALITY.
I'd be happy to see five total models from Palm:
$99 - Zire 41: 320 x 320 monochrome screen, 32 MB RealRAM, SD slot, high quality black plastic case. Keep it small and light. 200 MHz processor.
$199 - Tungsten E³ - 320 x 480 color screen, 64 MB RealRAM, SD slot, Bluetooth, high quality black plastic case. 300 -400 MHz processor or license the HHE from Sony.
$399 - Tungsten 7 - 320 x 480 OLED color screen, 128 MB RealRAM, dual CompactFlash/SD slot, dual Bluetooth/Wi-Fi, black manesium or aluminum case, voice recorder, charging light, cradle, complete software bundle (NetFront browser, bug-free VersaMail, BackupMan, TealLock, McFile, Desktop To Go, video player, MP3 player, etc.) 400 - 500 MHz processor, underclockable, or license the HHE from Sony.
$199 - Treo 200 - small, 3.5 oz smartphone in Sony Ericsson T630 form factor, running Treo 650 OS, 64 MB RAM, no expansion. 200 MHz processor.
$499 - Treo 700 - essentially same as Treo 650 but with everything finally FIXED: no quality control problems, 320 x 320 color screen, 128 MB RAM, internal antenna, proper voice quality, complete software bundle (including remote memory deletion), SD slot, voice recorder (with software to record in MP3 format like with iRiver's MP3 players). Make two versions available: one with and one without a 2 megapixel camera. 300 MHz processor.
That's the kind of FOCUSED lineup that could have brought Palm back into being competitive again. Instead we're just going to see the same type of painful, protracted decline with Palm as we did with Netscape, WordPerfect, etc.
Hopefully, Palmsource can get three or four major handset makers to sign on and keep the platform alive. Motorola, Sony Ericsson, LG, Siemens, Sanyo, Samsung, and Palm making smartphones would have assured a powerful Palm Economy for many years to come. As it stands now "Palm Economy" is just another useless dotcom-style buzzword like "synergies", "paradigm shift" and "e"-anything.
TVoR has spoken. Make it so.
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
Here's my list--2 Zires, 2 Tungstens, a LifeDrive, and two Treos:
$100 Zire 32-Carryover model from the Zire 31 with the notable exception of a Treo 600 style 160*160 screen (read: slightly improved over Zire 31's screen), and the Athena connector added to the case. I'm fine with keeping 16mb RAM & a blue plastic case to keep costs down.
$200 Tungsten E2-Carryover model. Release a ROM update to take care of the find bug & any remaining issues.
$300 Zire 73-Essentially a carryover model from the Zire 72s but add a GOOD quality 2mp camera, 320*480 screen, and Athena connector. Bundle a STRONG selection of media apps with it and a couple of games to attract the zoom-zoom kids.
$400 Tungsten T7-320*480, BT & Wi-Fi, 64mb NVFS, 512mb flash drive, voice recorder, 416mhz CPU, very high quality charcoal aluminum case, charge LED & vibrating alarm.
$450-$500 LifeDrive 2-6gb or larger HD, 64mb or 128mb REAL RAM cache, bigger battery, ALL bugs squashed, cradle included.
$200 Treo 200-same as what TVoR said but cut the RAM down to 32mb NVFS and include a mini or micro SD slot (aka TransFlash) and an SD adapter card (like what my Moto V710 uses).
$500 Treo 700-same as what TVoR said but it MUST have a 320*480 screen, even if the physical LCD size is much less than the T3/T5/LD and/or it ends up being a smidgen taller than the Treo 650. 64mb RAM would still be a usable amount but 128 is always preferred. Clear out remaining Treo 650 stocks @ $350 while they last.
The above lineup would be unified on a single connector/charger/cable standard for the first time in years, thereby reducing both consumer & retailer confusion/aggravation. Ideally, the lineup would share two types of styli. A thinner fixed stylus on the Zires & Treos and the Tungsten T/LD style boing boing stylus for the remaining models.
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
Given Palm's/P1's historical slugghishness to react to market trends....
[sarcasm for P1's sake]Oh, you noticed that too?[/sarcasm] You got that right, hkklife. We've got camera companies who built in wifi to digital cameras before P1 figured out the top-end Tungsten ought to have it. Sheesh.
I'm still waiting for the mythical "color HandEra."
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
Seriously, we just want LifeDrive-style specs without the thickness, bugs & HD and with at least 2x the RAM---NVFS, DRAM, or otherwise. HOW hard can that be??
Announcing the PERFECT Palm PDA lineup:
Taking your suggestions into account, I'm pleased to present Palm's (NOT pa1mOne's!) brilliant Fall, 2005 lineup:
$99 - Zire 32: 320 x 320 color screen, 32 MB RealRAM, no SD slot, high quality black plastic case. Keep it small and light. 200 MHz processor. Athena connector.
$199 - Tungsten E³ - 320 x 480 color screen, 64 MB RealRAM, SD slot, Bluetooth, high quality black plastic case. 300 -400 MHz processor or license the HHE from Sony. Athena connector.
$[299] Zire 73-Essentially a carryover model from the Zire 72s but add a GOOD quality 2mp camera, 320*480 screen, and Athena connector. Bundle a STRONG selection of media apps with it and a couple of games to attract the zoom-zoom kids.
$399 - Tungsten 7 - 320 x 480 OLED color screen (or regular color screen if unable to meet price point), 128 MB RealRAM, dual CompactFlash/SD slot, dual Bluetooth/Wi-Fi, black magnesium or aluminum case, voice recorder, charging light, vibrating alarm, cradle, complete software bundle (NetFront browser, bug-free VersaMail, BackupMan, TealLock, McFile, Desktop To Go, video player, MP3 player, etc.) 400 - 500 MHz processor, underclockable, or license the HHE from Sony. Athena connector.
$199 - Treo 200 - small, 3.5 oz smartphone in Sony Ericsson T630 form factor, running Treo 650 OS, 64 MB RAM, no expansion. 200 MHz processor.
$499 - Treo 700 - essentially same as Treo 650 but with everything finally FIXED: no quality control problems, 320 x 320 color screen, 128 MB RAM, internal antenna, proper voice quality, complete software bundle (including remote memory deletion), SD slot, voice recorder (with software to record in MP3 format like with iRiver's MP3 players). Make two versions available: one with and one without a 2 megapixel camera. 300 MHz processor. The only way I can see a 320 x 480 Treo would be if it was either without a keyboard (like Pat Horne's fantastic "Treo 800g" design - http://churchoflivingfaith.com/images/treo800g.jpg) or if the keyboard folded down like the Sony Ericsson P910 or slid out like several new models now do. After having used a Treo 600 for a while I'd have to say that having a keyboard is a MUST for Palm's top of the line smartphone. (Sorry, Pat.) Until you use a Treo keyboard it's hard to realize how much a keyboard could transform your PDA experience.
4 traditional PDAs + 2 smartphones. Most price points covered. All the necessary technology has been availaable for years.
TVoR
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
You won't have Michael Mace to kick around anymore
You won't have Michael Mace to kick around anymore
I don't want to see anyone not be able to feed their family, but if this is really true, he should have seen this coming. he did hang in there for a long time though - I think he was there even pre-Yankoswki. but I guess even a cat only has nine lives.
He probably got a decent severance package (3-12 months salary) tied to a non-disclosure agreement which unfortunately precludes him from posting all of PSRC's dirty laundry - which I have to believe includes a very, very sh**-stained set of Nagel's underwear.
kirvin should be happy - perhaps he can apply for the actual *paid* position of "chief senior apologist" rather than simply continuing to do it for free on the internet.
happy 4th all.
R.I.P., M.M.
G
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
Where's Michael Mace? Right here, Geeko:
"Chris Dunphy (radven) wrote,
@ 2005-07-05 08:45:00
Current mood: contemplative
Current music: Californication - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Entry tags: palmsource, work
Clean Sweep...
Thinking of the people I've worked for at Palm/PalmSource over the past 4.5 years, it has dawned on me today that now NONE of them remain - tracing up the org chart all the way to the CEO level.
When I started as the director of competitive analysis 4.5 years ago, it was working for the VP of Strategy / Chief Competitive Officer Michael Mace. Together we worked for the CTO Bill Maggs, who worked for the CEO Carl Yankowski. Both long long gone.
Eventually as PalmSource split off from Palm(One), Michael and I ended up working for the Sr VP of Marketing Gabi Schindler, who reported to the PalmSource CEO David Nagel. Nagel resigned in May, and Gabi and Michael were like me part of last week's cuts.
But I had switched into Product Marketing within the Engineering organization last November to take on the Installer and other projects, and I no longer worked for Gabi or Michael. The new organization above me consisted of a group director who reported into the VP of Product Marketing who reported into the Sr VP of Engineering, who reported into Nagel. The group director got an "offer he couldn't refuse" and left in December. The VP also got an "offer he couldn't refuse" and left in April. And the Sr VP of engineering was part of last week's cuts as well...
The only managers of any sort left who I ever worked under were the new VP of Product Marketing, and the new interim-CEO. Both of them are new to PalmSource, and have never had a chance to get to know me or my projects.
This makes being cut a lot easier to stomach. I don't feel any sense of betrayal from any of the people I have ever worked for, and who had backed my visions. They are all gone too.
In some ways, it feels like a tsunami hit. Or as if someone has hit a reset button.
I'm glad to be on the outside - escaping with a very nice life raft.
Now, what next?"
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Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
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The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
Interesting. I hope they all got nice severance packages and that they find new, better jobs soon. It's not personal, just business.
Benhamou's Legacy
These are the deep ramifications when a company fails. When the Benhamou, Yankowski, Nagel types derail a company, there's ultimately a lot of human fallout. People's jobs, careers, and LIVES get fu**ed with. People who are trying to go out there and earn a living get f**ed with. Yankowski and Nagel walked away with millions for their tenures of disaster - and the minions get a few months pay. CEOs need to be held accountable for their performance while they're still employed - and their feet need to be held to the fire. Too many people get screwed - investors, employees, partners, customers when they f**ck up.
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
Some will say "management" has been cut.
Yet the evidence of the past several years clearly points to MIS-management being swept away.
All this is especially ironic given the smugness displayed in recent online interviews.
Surreal interview with Michael Mace
His final "interview" was definitely a surreal piece of work. Reading and participating in that thread was like a bad acid trip in the middle of a high school math class - you know you really should get up and leave, but the freakiness is just too hypnotic:
http://www.allaboutpalm.com/forum/showthread.php?t=44
Palm/PalmSource needed to get lean and mean three or four years ago, but they kept acting like this was still the heady go-go dotcom days of 1999. The problem with making the cuts they did at this point is that any talented coders they may have left have now finally seen the writing on the wall and are looking elsewhere for a more stable employer. Several people abandoned ship in the past year, while many others have reportedly remained on the verge of leaving. (Two of PalmSource's best people just said they will be giving the company notice that they're leaving.) China MobileSoft is NOT the answer. PalmSource seems to think their Chinese subsidiary will obediently crank out the PalmLinux code as architected by those Brilliant Be Engineers. How naive. Look what happened when Palm outsourced tech support to the scriptreaders in India.
This is gonna get ugly. Real soon™.
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
Linux, in particular, helps with developing new product categories because a lot of consumer electronics companies are already working with Linux. So we're talking with them. However, I don't want to hype expectations about that -- just the talking process can take many months, and even if they sign up for a license, then they have to develop their product. That process takes at least eight months, and sometimes closer to two years if it's a phone and has to be approved by a carrier. The more innovative the product, the longer it takes to develop.
So even if someone signed a new license today, it might be mid-2007 before they'd ship a product, if it's something really different and innovative. That's just how the industry works.
Especially as we move into phones, the adoption curve for new versions of the OS gets longer and less predictable. If you want an example of how this works, check out the number of Symbian phones that are still shipping with Symbian 6 and 7 even though the OS is now on version 9.
At the time we announced Palm OS Cobalt, a couple of licensees had very aggressive plans to ship it quickly. Subsequently those plans changed. I think it was a mistake for us to try to predict hardware shipment dates for Palm OS Cobalt, and this is why we're trying to avoid predicting when hardware incorporating Palm OS for Linux will ship. It'll be there when our licensees ship it.
In general, our partners understand these schedule uncertainties, and they prefer that we don't try to predict hardware dates.
When is PalmLinux REALLY expected to be finished as a stable OS?We're targeting Palm OS for Linux shipment to licensees in the first half of 2006. Please also read my comments above about the difficulty of predicting shipment dates.
So no LG Garnet phone until 2007-2008, or 2009 if its Cobalt?
When will PalmOS 5 be EOL?We're not doing significant additional development on Palm OS Garnet today. But licensees can continue to ship it as long as they want to (see my comments about Symbian 6 above).
Definitely Cobalt then
Can you tell us how many developers/software engineers that palmsource has and the breakdown of what they are working on? How many are working on cobalt? palm linux?We have about 500 people, most of them engineers. They are spread across three development centers, in France, California, and China. China is the center for feature phone software development; France and California are working primarily on Palm OS for Linux.
Vs MS's 1200 engineers
What kind of perks or benefits are offered to palmsource employees to keep them and keep them motivated?All the usual computer industry stuff. The motiation's not just financial, though -- a lot of us are here because we really like the mobile market and want to help shape it.
I bet they are not very motivated now (accept by the very real fear of losing their job!)
Surur
RE: The original Palm split was a SHAM!
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm eCONomy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
NetFrontLinux - the next major cellphone OS?: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=8060#111823
PalmSource Posts Profit, Cuts Jobs, Rewards Failure
For 'Ratbert' read 'Nagel'
RE: PalmSource Posts Profit, Cuts Jobs, Rewards Failure
http://finance.yahoo.com/q/mh?s=PSRC
By the way, if you want to see a company in trouble, you can do no better than look at the Anglo-French company Eurotunnel. If I remember well, last year the shareholders held a revolt and forced most of the executive board out. PalmSource is no well near the hole Eurotunnel is in now.
( Ironically I'm watching a TV programme about the British fondness for losers and failures )
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"What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight � it�s the size of the fight in the dog" - Dwight D. Eisenhower
Reorganization
Reorganizing can be a wonderful method for creating the illusion of progress while producing confusion, inefficiency, and demoralization.
RE: Reorganization
------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------
The Palm Economy = Communism™
The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038
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