Commerce Commission Chair John Belgrave said the Commission is satisfied that the proposed acquisition would not substantially lessen competition in any market.

Background

Hewlett-Packard and Compaq proposed to merge in the United States in an agreement dated 4 September 2001. Under the terms of that transaction, it is proposed that Compaq be merged with a newly formed subsidiary of Hewlett-Packard, thus becoming a wholly owned Hewlett-Packard subsidiary.

Hewlett-Packard and Compaq have a number of New Zealand interconnected bodies corporate including Hewlett-Packard NZ Limited, Compaq Financial Services (New Zealand) Limited and Compaq Computer New Zealand. The terms of the merger agreement in New Zealand have not yet been finalised.

Hewlett-Packard was founded in 1939 and incorporated in 1947 in the State of California. Its corporate headquarters are in Palo Alto, California. It operates in more than 120 countries. More than half of it's revenue is derived from business outside the US. Hewlett-Packard is a global provider of computing and imaging solutions and services for businesses and the home.

Compaq was founded in 1982. Compaq is a global provider of computing products and services, and has its corporate headquarters in Houston, Texas.

Media contact: Manager, Market Structure, Richard Braae

Phone work (04) 498 4720

Communications Manager Jackie Maitland

Phone work (04) 498 0920, cellphone (025) 249 3407