HP Enterprise Spins Software Division into Micro Focus International
October 23, 2017
It would seem that the saga of HP’s lamented 2011 Autonomy acquisition is now complete—Reuters announces, “Hewlett Packard Enterprise to Complete Software Spin-Off.” Reporter Salvador Rodriguez explains:
The enterprise software businesses, which include the widely used ArcSight security platform, have been merged with Micro Focus International Plc (MCRO.L), a British software company. HPE was formed when the company once known as Hewlett-Packard split into HPE and HP Inc in November 2015.
The spin-off comes as HPE adjusts to the rapid shift of corporate computing to cloud services offered by the likes of Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O). HPE aims to cater specifically to customers running services both on their own premises and in the cloud, said Ric Lewis, senior vice president of HPE’s cloud software group, in an interview.
The spin-off marks the end of HP’s unhappy tangle with Autonomy, which it acquired for $11 billion in an aborted effort to transform HP into an enterprise software leader. The ink was barely dry on the much-criticized deal when the company took an $8.8 billion writedown on it.
But wait, the story is not over quite yet—the legal case that began when HP sued Autonomy ’s chief officers continues. Apparently, that denouement is now HPE’s to handle. As for Micro Focus, Rodriguez reports it will now be run by former HPE Chief Operating Officer Chris Hsu, who plans to focus on growth through acquisitions. Wait… wasn’t that what started this trouble in the first place?
Cynthia Murrell, October 23, 2017
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