Letter From the Editor: Untangling the HP/Compaq Acquisition by Betsy Burton - 12 September 2001 Once every few years, an event happens in the IT industry that sends a ripple throughout, with enterprises left wondering what to do with their IT strategies, and vendors questioning their future technology directions and plans. Such an event occurred when Hewlett-Packard (HP) announced plans to acquire Compaq Computer. Gartner's in-depth and timely research on this planned acquisition shines light on this unexpected and confusing announcement. HP/Compaq Bet Boldly on Service-Centric Environments There are a few twists. First, one of the most-complex aspects of this acquisition is that it is not initially obvious what the overriding benefit of this action will be for enterprises, HP and Compaq, and the IT industry in general. Second, it's clear that there is significant overlap between HP's and Compaq's products and services, and HP/Compaq will have a huge task before them to reconcile this overlap. Third, there seems to be little support from the market as witnessed by the decrease in stock value of both companies after the acquisition announcement on 3 September 2001 - this lack of support may impact its fruition. We look forward to hearing from you with your inquires and input!

	Overview HP and Compaq Bet on Service-Centric Environments by Tom Austin, Michael Glennon, Brian Gammage and Betsy Burton - 12 September 2001 HP has boldly bet on service-centric environments with its announced acquisition of Compaq. HP is trading off short-term growth in a market with little growth potential to try to corner a more-vibrant, growing, future market.	Ask Questions, Get Answers Listen to Gartner's Pre-recorded AudioTeleconferences on the HP/Compaq Aquisition. HP/Compaq 1 - 5 September 2001 HP/Compaq 2 - 6 September 2001 HP/Compaq 3 - 7 September 2001 Download RealAudio player

HP/Compaq Acquisition: A Green Light for Process by Martin Reynolds - 12 September 2001 With any acquisition, there are a number of issues that can derail the process prior to completion. Gartner finds the HP/Compaq deal to be extraordinarily clean, with a low risk of not being completed.		HP/Compaq's Plausible Survivability for Unstated Reasons by Tom Austin - 12 September 2001 We believe two unstated factors (a dramatic fall off in design wins and a desire to become the preferred provider of .NET- and Hailstorm-related solutions) are key to understanding this deal.
Negotiating With HP and Compaq in a Time of Transition by Mike Chuba - 12 September 2001 Customers negotiating with Hewlett-Packard and Compaq should not stop, but they should be more focused on the terms and conditions of the contracts to provide maximum protection.		HP/Compaq Server Consolidation: A Gartner Perspective by George Weiss - 12 September 2001 We present guidelines for assessing which server technologies are likely to survive, and which to go. HP and Compaq customers should minimize investment risks by steering toward most-likely-to-succeed cases.
The New, Bigger HP Needs a New, Bigger Software Strategy by Yefim Natis, Bill Gassman, Daryl Plummer and Donna Scott - 12 September 2001 HP's acquisition of Compaq merges two companies with weak track records in the software infrastructure market. Will the "new HP" follow the old road, devise a new strategy or let Microsoft drive its software vision?		HP and Compaq: Opportunities for Synergies Within the Volume Product Portfolio by Matthew Boon, Mikako Kitagawa, Pia Rieppo and Andy Woo - 12 September 2001 The HP/Compaq merger offers synergies from strengths in Compaq's IA server and mobile businesses, overhead cost reduction in commercial PC lines and complementary expertise in workstations.
HP/Compaq Storage: Uncertainty, Some Product Synergy by Nick Allen - 12 September 2001 Gartner sees some storage market and resource synergy, but integrating the two companies' storage product lines is likely to pose some daunting challenges.		HP/Compaq Acquisition: Changes for the Consumer by Mark Margevicius - 12 September 2001 A combined HP/Compaq will control a majority of the retail PC space. Dominating the PC market will introduce its own set of challenges.
HP and Compaq Services Business Merge: Can 1 + 1 = 3? by Eric Rocco - 12 September 2001 While the primary goal of the merger of HP and Compaq was not IT services, it will combine similar services organizations that will need to expand further into consulting and IT management services.		HP/Compaq: Imaging and Printing ... the Good, the Bad and the Ugly by Malcolm Hancock, Paula Bursley, Peter Grant, James Lundy and Ken Weilerstein - 12 September 2001 HP's Printing and Imaging division appears to be a winner for the short term, following the proposed HP-Compaq merger, but lack of investment in critical areas could mean significant long-term problems.
HP/Compaq Acquisition in the Americas: Routes to Market by Todd Kort - 12 September 2001 HP must restructure its PC supply chain and distribution systems to become more competitive with Dell. Cost cutting and rationalizing product lines are only a partial answer.		HP/Compaq Acquisition in the Americas: More Size and Uncertainty by Martin Reynolds, Jeffrey Hewitt and Luis Anavitarte - 12 September 2001 North America is the home market for Compaq and Hewlett-Packard, but they dominate only in the consumer retail PC business. Although they rank in the top four players, their other businesses are not spectacular successes any longer.
HP/Compaq Acquisition in EMEA: Will More of the Same Mean Less? by Samina Malik and Jonathon Hardcastle - 12 September 2001 HP and Compaq have similar market portfolios in Europe, but each has strengths and weaknesses. A successful merger would require a combination of rationalized offerings to exploit areas of market strength.		HP/Compaq Acquisition in Europe: Routes to Market by Thomas Reuner - 12 September 2001 Re-engineering or merging supply chains and channel policies will be only one of a range of challenges for the merged HP and Compaq in Europe.
HP/Compaq Acquisition in Asia/Pacific and Japan: Is Bigger Better? by Rolf Jester, Chris Morris, Daniel McHugh, Matthew Boon, Ian Bertram, Heather Brigstocke, Bob Hayward, Tadaaki Mataga, Kanae Maita, Masaki Suzuki, Satoshi Yamanoi, Kiyoshi Kurihara Akiyoshi Ishiwata and Rika Narisawa - 12 September 2001 The proposed merger of Hewlett-Packard and Compaq Computer will, in the Asia/Pacific and Japanese markets, create insufficient business value to amount to a serious strategic challenge to IBM. The merged company could become a significant force in the regional hardware market if it tackles the many rationalization issues. However, the proposed merger—if it proceeds—fails to address the needs that both separate companies had for aggressive growth in the professional services that lead a high proportion of IT sales in Asia/Pacific and Japan.