Amazon may buy Palm from HP, report says

And Apotheker to get $9.6 million parting gift

There are a couple of HP stories to chew on this morning.

First, VentureBeat is reporting that Amazon may purchase Palm from HP.

Who will save what's left of Palm from HP's bumbling? It could be Amazon, as the online retailing giant is in serious negotiations to snap up Palm from HP, VentureBeat has learned.

A well-placed source tells us that HP is currently looking to rid itself of Palm as soon as possible, and that Amazon is the closest to finalizing the deal, among a handful of contenders.

Buying Palm set HP back $1.2 billion just last year. Amazon wouldn't be paying retail.

Meanwhile, it's been learned that getting rid of former CEO Leo Apotheker - after he served only 11 months on the job -- will cost HP another $9.6 million.

Nice work if you can get it.

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