J.D. Edwards’ Cost to Compete: $1 Billion
From Bloomberg News
J.D. Edwards & Co. spent $1 billion over five years on a failed attempt to build products to compete with Oracle Corp. and PeopleSoft Inc., a witness said at an antitrust trial to block Oracle’s hostile bid for PeopleSoft.
The testimony from an executive at J.D. Edwards, which was purchased by PeopleSoft last year, was part of the Justice Department’s effort to persuade the court to block the $7.7-billion bid.
Government lawyers said J.D. Edwards’ inability to develop sophisticated financial and human resource management software for large companies illustrates the barriers to competing in that market.
PeopleSoft’s board has rejected Oracle’s offer four times.
