News: Major Changes at HP, TouchPad Dead

Just days after Google announced it was buying Motorola Mobility, Hewlett Packard announced it was going to discontinue operations for webOS devices, specifically the TouchPad and webOS phones. The TouchPad was released in June, so this pretty much can be read as HP giving up in the mobile space.

Additionally, there have been rumors of the company looking to spin off its low-profit computer business, focusing on software and services. This is a move similar to IBM’s sale of its PC business to Lenovo, and is also in line with HP’s current discussions with Autonomy, a software company.

HP also reported that it plans to announce that its board of directors has authorized the exploration of strategic alternatives for its Personal Systems Group (PSG). HP will consider a broad range of options that may include, among others, a full or partial separation of PSG from HP through a spin-off or other transaction.

In addition, HP reported that it plans to announce that it will discontinue operations for webOS devices, specifically the TouchPad and webOS phones. HP will continue to explore options to optimize the value of webOS software going forward.

This is a bit disappointing, as HP’s webOS products seemed to be a good alternative to Android or BlackBerry devices if you still wanted a quality user interface without an Apple logo. Still, disappointing sales will do that.