Oracle Loses $3 Billion Verdict for Ditching HP Itanium Chip
- Hiring of Hurd shows Oracle wanted to hurt HP, juror says
- Oracle says it isn’t obligated to support chip indefinitely
Why Did Oracle Bail on HP's Itanium Chip?
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Oracle Corp. was ordered by a jury to pay $3 billion after finding that billionaire Larry Ellison and his company violated a contract to support software for Hewlett-Packard Co.’s once-promising Itanium chip.
The jury saw the case as clear cut and were swayed by what they saw as efforts by Ellison and former HP Chief Executive Officer Mark Hurd to hurt his previous employer, said juror Kyra Knaver, a student at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. Ellison lured Hurd to Oracle in 2010 shortly after Hurd resigned amid an investigation into his relationship with a contractor.