Hewlett-Packard Co. this morning said it has submitted a$1.6 billion bid to buy 3Par, just a week after Dell had agreed to buy thevirtualized storage maker for $1.15 billion.
HP made its offer in a letter to 3PAR President and CEODavid Scott on Monday morning.
The offer will force 3PAR’s board to reconsider its mergeragreement with Dell as the HP offer is a “superior proposal,” HP’sExecutive Vice President and Chief Strategy and Technology Officer, ShaneRobison, wrote in the letter.
Robison said that HP would be a better fit for 3PAR thanwould Dell, as both are Silicon Valley companies.
HP said that if the proposal, 33.3% higher than Dell’s bid,is approved by the 3Par board, the deal should close by year’s end.
The deal is not subject to any financing contingency, HPadded.
HP officials said if the deal closes, the 3Par storage technologywill be used as part of its Converged Infrastructure strategy, which includesstorage, server and networking products.
“HP’s proposal offers superior value to 3PAR’sshareholders. Our global reach, strong routes to market and commitment to innovationuniquely position HP as the ideal fit for 3PAR,” said Dave Donatelli, HPexecutive vice president and general manager, Enterprise Servers, Storage andNetworking, in a statement. “We’ve seen great momentum with our ConvergedInfrastructure strategy, and 3PAR accelerates that strategy, particularly incloud and scale-out markets.”