1. CBS to Sell Radio Stations 2. Buffett Bets on Oil 3. Corning Slashing Debt 4. Goldcorp Comes Up Short 5. Value Investors Speak Out

You and I have talked a number of times in the last few years, and you were never shy about your desire to take JBoss public. What happened?

Part of it was Sarbanes-Oxley. The cost of compliance is massive. For a company of our size that's going to be measured on cash flow, a $2 million hit on a $20 million revenue base is not insignificant. On the personal level the issue was liquidity for everyone in the company. Many had been here for five years, and the idea of waiting another 18 months and then being locked up [not allowed to sell] wasn't right.

Second, as the chairman of the board it was my duty to maximize present value. We'd go public at around $700 million [in market cap] and that was a wash with the Red Hat deal. But as a public company I've got to show cash flow, I've got to show margin expansion, I've got to show everything Red Hat has been showing. I wouldn't have been able to invest back into the business for two years. But I don't want to invest in two years, I want to invest now.

Where?

I want to go to telecom, to management, to collaboration. I want to be that large Web 2.0 infrastructure platform. Geographically, Asia-Pacific wasn't an area we planned to expand to. Now, it is.

Larry Ellison has talked about building his own version of Linux? Do you take that notion seriously?

I take it very seriously. Larry is infatuated with open source and I believe he wants to do it. But I believe he needs open source like he needs a hole in the head. Open source is going to be a very hard cultural lesson for Oracle because they are used to milking an installed base that has no place to go. Open source isn't like that. You'd better keep your customers happy because they are not forced by a license to pay. He's in for a rude awakening.

The $350 million deal with Red Hat closes on May 31. What's your role going to be in the combined company? You have the reputation of being a tough-minded guy with a real ego. How are you going to make the transition from being the boss of a startup to subordinate in a much larger company?

I'm officially senior VP of Red Hat and general manager of the JBoss division. Since we have earnout targets (up to $70 million depending on performance) we need to be independent. The team at Red Hat and I are very compatible. Matthew and Charlie [Red Hat CEO Matthew Szulik and CFO Charles Peters] came down to North Carolina to close the deal.

Did Larry Ellison do that?

No, I came to his house. The fish (in his pond) cost more than my car. It was obscene. The reason we chose Red Hat was to go to a place where there were no conflicts, where the future of the product and the business model were clearly understood. And I'll tell you, the feedback from our customer base has been one of relief.

Ballmer on the Skids?

What really happened, according to sources close the matter, was this: Ballmer called an all-hands meeting to discuss performance reviews and compensation Thursday afternoon. As is often the case with Microsoft, part of the truth leaked out, and that was enough to get the wheels spinning. Could there be some management changes in the offing? Sure, there are a number of vacancies in the organizational chart. But given the friendly board of directors, not to mention Ballmer's huge stake in the company and his friendship with Gates, a change at the very top seems highly unlikely.