HP Axes WebOS Development, Tablets and Smartphones Product Lines

From X-bit Labs: HP said on Thursday that it would can the development of its webOS operating system and devices and will shut down the appropriate division. The world's biggest IT company said that the webOS product line did not meet its expectations and it was looking forward to explore options how to capitalize on the webOS.

HP will discontinue operations for webOS devices, specifically the TouchPad and webOS smartphones, the company said. HP indicated that the devices have not met internal milestones and financial targets, which means that the firm neither sold enough tablets and handsets and thus lost money. HP will continue to explore options "to optimize the value of webOS software going forward", it was indicated.

The Palo Alto, California-based HP got webOS along with the acquisition of Palm in early 2010 for $1.2 billion. After the takeover, the company dropped development of Google Android-based gadgets and said it would focus only on webOS. Later on, the firm promised to install the webOS onto devices other than tablets or smartphones, including printers, and even onto PCs as the secondary OS. By shutting down the webOS business, HP admits indirectly admits that it does not want to compete with consumer-oriented companies in the rapidly expanding market of mobile communication devices.

"HP, through its plans to shutter webOS and seek alternatives for its PC business, is limiting its exposure to the consumer hardware market and, instead, going all-in on a strategy of increasing its revenue and margins with an enterprise-focused bundle of software, services, servers and storage. Removing all or part of its low-margin consumer PC business and the expense of fighting its way into the mobile and tablet markets with a fourth offering (after Apple, Google, and Microsoft) will improve HPs margins in the short term," said Beau Skonieczny, research analyst of computing practice at Technology Business Research.

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