Say it ain't so, Tastykake!

If you grew up in the Philadelphia metropolitan area, it is likely that Tastykake was a treasured part of your childhood. In my pre-weight-loss era of life, Krimpets alone just about made up one of my Food Groups. I still enjoy their sugar-free options. So, it is with sorrow that I read that Tastykake is considering selling out in the face of growing challenges in their financial situation.

Tasty Baking Co. president and chief executive Charles Pizzi said in a statement that "unanticipated operational challenges" related to its new bakery in Philadelphia's Navy Yard had lowered projected savings for the fourth quarter of 2010 by $3 million to $10 million.

The company's shares plunged more than any other on the Nasdaq, giving up 37 percent of their value and hitting a 52–week low of $3.83 before closing at $4.05.
The company cited a bankruptcy filing by the owner of the A&P, Super Fresh and Pathmark grocery chains and rising commodity costs as contributing factors to the financial squeeze and said it was looking at all options.

I truly hope Tastykake can pull out of the death spiral and be restored to its former glory. Otherwise, I hope any would-be buyer would keep around the old brand in some form, instead of just adding any signature offerings to their own line-up.

HP buys Palm - Geeks rejoice

While the Apple Newton was the first attempt at a mass-market PDA, Palm was the company that really brought the idea of a handheld computing platform to the masses. Their "Palm Pilot" transformed the industry and reminded techies that simple is good. In recent years, Palm has fallen on hard times - mostly due to missteps by management teams who had no idea how to compete with the modern threats of Apple and Google - but after a few weeks of uncertainty HP has announced a purchase of Palm for $1.2 billion. This goes a long way toward ensuring some kind of future for the innovative company.

And as Sean has pointed out, this may lead to even more exciting possibilities like an HP branded iPad competitor running the WebOS!

Microsoft to Yahoo: "No mas!"

In a surprising move, Microsoft has called off the dogs and will no longer pursue a Yahoo acquisition by any means. It appears that Microsoft was prepared to go hostile until Yahoo's board made it clear that they were willing to commit corporate suicide in order to prevent such a takeover by outsourcing its search-ads business to Google - essentially dumping the talent that Micosoft was hoping to acquire by the takeover.

There is a lot of speculation out there for what this means for the I/T world: Steve Balmer being fired as a failed CEO, Yahoo's stock suffering a fatal plunge in a "Black Monday" selloff, Google announcing formal acquisition of Yahoo, antitrust charges being filed against Google, etc. We'll have to wait and see what reality brings.

But as a Yahoo stockholder, I am glad to know I will not soon be a Microsoft shareholder.

Microsoft to buy Danger (Maker of T-Mobile Sidekick)

In an apparent attempt to end the iPhone's dominance over Windows Mobile, Microsoft has announced they will be buying out Danger the maker of the Sidekick line of phones. Long-time Mod-Bloggers are aware that once upon a time I was a HUGE fan of the Sidekick devices, which were great for doing e-mail and text messaging. However, when the iPhone appeared, I quickly made the switch.

Honestly, this may be good for Danger, whose phones were being quickly marginalized by the growing smartphone market. Their phones were always popular with teens, but never figured out how to sell to adults. If they can marry Microsoft's business savvy with the Sidekick form factor and web-savvy nature, it could work.