HP TouchPad: A Necessary Risk, Uncertain Reward - Forbes (blog)

By Sarah Rotman Epps

Today HP launches the HP TouchPad, the first tablet based on HP’s new operating system, webOS, which it acquired along with Palm exactly one year ago. HP’s $1.2B initial investment in Palm, plus its additional investment over the past year to bring the TouchPad and its webOS smartphones to market, is a risky investment–there’s no guarantee that consumers will buy these products, or that the consumer electronics market has room for another software platform. But the webOS investment is a risk HP had to take, in order to:

Compete with Apple. Apple owns its own hardware and its own operating system, which means it controls the experience to a greater degree than OEMs that make hardware for Apple or Google’s software. With webOS, HP gets more control over the total product experience.Differentiate itself from other OEMs making Android and Windows devices. HP wants to be more than a company that makes gray boxes running Windows. webOS helps HP differentiate from the pack but it’s also an unknown to most consumers, and adoption is uncertain.Hedge against PC cannibalization. In a recent Forrester report, we found that PC cannibalization from tablets has been modest so far but is likely to increase in the next 6 to 12 months. HP is the biggest PC manufacturer in the world, and it needs to adapt its product portfolio to avoid more disappointing quarters like this most recent one.

The TouchPad is a good product. The hardware is solid–HP didn’t skimp on the screen quality and the device feels solid and well-balanced to hold, similar to the first-generation iPad. The webOS software is more polished than Honeycomb and overall the TouchPad is a better product than any Android tablet on the market. With 300 TouchPad apps at launch, HP won’t win the app numbers wars, but I like HP’s approach of focusing on quality rather than quantity–it’s easier to find quality apps on the TouchPad than it is on an Android tablet or the BlackBerry PlayBook, which had 3,000 apps at launch. And the Pivot “magazine” that highlights featured apps in the HP’s App Catalog is a nice touch. But it’s unclear how many consumers will opt for this first-gen HP tablet. In an online survey of 4,564 US consumers Forrester conducted in May and June 2011, we found that beyond the iPad, consumers’ preferences for which tablet to buy are extremely fragmented, and HP doesn’t stand out from the pack with only 7% of consumers considering buying a tablet saying they’d consider buying a TouchPad:

There are some big unknowns that will impact whether HP’s webOS bet will pay off or not. First, we’ve yet to see HP’s marketing and channel execution for the TouchPad. Second, we don’t yet know the extent of webOS licensing to other OEMs–if reports of OEMs like Samsung licensing webOS are true, that could substantially increase the install base of the platform and its appeal to app developers. Third, we haven’t seen Windows 8 tablets hit the market yet, which may leave the TouchPad in the dust.

The bottom line: In 2011, the TouchPad has a shot to be the No. 2 tablet for consumers, far behind the iPad but ahead of RIM and Android competitors. In 2012, the game changes with Windows 8. If webOS survives the platform wars beyond that, HP will have an important asset to differentiate itself from other OEMs and to compete in the post-PC era.

Sarah Rotman Epps is a senior analyst at Forrester Research, serving consumer product strategy professionals. Follow her on twitter @srepps.

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UBS paying 677 K $ to IND. investment problems - Forbes

INDIANAPOLIS - Financial Services UBS has agreed to pay regulators of Indiana $677,000 Thursday to settle a claim that she has sold "unsuitable investments" to a now extinct teachers union health care trust.

The claim arises out of $ 16.2 million which the Indiana State Teachers Association Insurance Trust invested in funds of private capital 13 from 2004 to 2009. A settlement of consent signed by UBS (UBS - news - people) and the Division of values securities Indiana shows that the company agreed to pay a fine of $450,000 and $227,000 of costs.

Details of the colony, including investment concerned, have not been released. It follows a separate regulation between the Indiana State Teachers Association, and UBS in which the company has agreed to buy some of the funds of the union, pursuant to the consent agreement.

ISTA of 50,000 members was resumed by the Association of national education in May 2009, after the State of the Department of insurance said that his confidence of insurance had a net value of negative $ 67 million. ISTA sued former officials and financial advisors three months later, saying that they poorly managed the trust.

Other claims by and against ISTA are still pending.

"We are pleased to see a resolution of this part of an ongoing investigation into other violations related to unrest surrounding ISTA," White Charlie Indiana Secretary of State, whose Office includes the Division of securities, said in a statement written Thursday.

UBS did not admit or deny any responsibility with the regulations.

A spokesman of the company "UBS fully cooperated with the Division of securities throughout its investigation, and the company is pleased that this issue has been resolved", Karina Byrne said in a statement issued by the headquarters of the city of New York.

ISTA spokesman Mark Shoup said that the union did not comment on the regulations.

The Division of values securities Indiana continues ISTA and the National Association of education in the Federal Court on the amounts owed to more than 20 school districts in Indiana by the trust. The State agency alleges that ISTA said school districts, they would earn returns on reserves of the left in the trust of insurance, but this money has been mixed with other funds, and that the association of teachers cannot explain correctly for 23 million for schools.

ISTA has since sold his downtown Indianapolis building to the PBN and at least 40 employees on foot. Teachers already brought an action for damages of ISTA and many of the same defendants.

In October, representatives of the State of securities filed an administrative complaint against a financial advisor who advised ISTA while working for UBS and Morgan Stanley (MS - news - people). The Agency said the agent notified officials in early in 2004 to develop the trust money in alternative investments such as hedge funds and funds that had long-term risks but offered large initial commissions.

The complaint contends he is not also say ISTA risk or what his company compensation and he would receive.

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