Oracle to Host Meeting With PeopleSoft Users

Oracle Corp. will be hosting a town hall meeting in its ongoing efforts to woo PeopleSoft Inc. customers, Oracle executives confirmed on Tuesday.

As reported by eWEEK, the meeting is the first in a series of online events for the enterprise applications customers of PeopleSoft, which Oracle has been waging a pitched battle It will take place on Thursday, July 17, at 9 a.m. PDT and can be accessed via audio conference or at Oracles Web site. An Oracle spokeswoman declined to give a schedule for future town hall meetings.

Oracle Executive Vice President Chuck Phillips will host the event and will discuss the Redwood Shores, Calif., companys commitment to PeopleSoft customers. PeopleSoft customers have been invited to send questions via e-mail in advance or during the meeting to townhall@oracle.com.

Officials at PeopleSoft, of Pleasanton, Calif., were predictably scornful of Oracles ongoing efforts to meet with its board of directors and to sway customers.

“Whats the point?” said PeopleSoft spokesman Steve Swasey. “Theyve submitted two hostile takeover offers. Our board took careful consideration and reviewed each and rejected both. The key here is that PeopleSoft is not for sale. I dont understand what would be the point of meeting with someone whos been launching hostile tender offers in the media, when our board has reviewed with careful consideration each offer. PeopleSoft is not for sale, and well just focus on [the J.D. Edwards & Co. acquisition going forward].”

PeopleSoft on Monday said it had passed the Department of Justices antitrust review of its proposed $1.7 billion acquisition of Denver-based J.D. Edwards. The deal is expected to close by Thursday.