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• Sun Microsystems is a major American technology company that develops and sells both software and hardware. Among other achievements, its software division developed the Java programming language, and its hardware division develops commercial computer hardware based on both its proprietary SPARC processors as well as those of AMD and Intel. Sun is also involved in information technology services, and is a major proponent of the open source software movement.

  On March 18, 2009, The Wall Street Journal reported that IBM was seeking to buy Sun Microsystems for at least $6.5 billion.BusinessWeek: Why IBM Wants Sun (March 18, 2009) On April 5, after an offer of $7 billion was rejected by Sun board members, IBM abandoned negotiations altogether.New York Times: I.B.M. Withdraws $7 Billion Offer for Sun Microsystems (April 5, 2009)

• Fast Facts

  1. Stock symbol: JAVA (NASDAQ)
  2. Annual revenue (2007): $13.9 billion
  3. Founders: Vinod Khsola, Andy Bechtolsheim, Scott McNealy, and Bill Joy
  4. Year established: February 12, 1982
  5. Industry: Commercial computer systems
  6. Phone: 650-960-1300
  7. Fax: 650-336-0646
  8. HQ: Santa Clara, California
  9. President/CEO: Jonathan I. Schwartz
  10. Chairman/Co-Founder: Scott G. McNealy
  11. Staff: 33,500

• Key Dates

  1. February 12, 1982: Founded by three Stanford grad students, Vinod Khsola, Andy Bechtolsheim, and Scott McNealy, joined soon after by software developer, Bill Joy
  2. 1986: Company offers its IPO, under the symbol SUNW
  3. 1995: Introduces Java, its proprietary object-oriented programming language
  4. December, 2001: Stock hits all-time low in the aftermath of dot-com bubble burst
  5. 2007: Changes stock symbol to JAVA
  6. 2007: Ranked #187 on the Fortune 500

• November 2008 Layoffs

  On November 14, 2008, Sun Microsystems announced they will layoff of between 5,000 and 6,000 employees.The New York Times: Crisis Spreads to Tech Sector as Sun to Cut Work Force (November 14, 2008)

• Competitors

  • Microsoft
  • Apple
  • HP
  • IBM

• Related Pages on Mahalo

  Java | JavaScript | Vinod Khosla | SourceForge | GNU | Open Source | Linux | Ubuntu | Computers | IBM | Sun Microsystems Layoffs | Carol Bartz

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