The European Commission has given its green light to the acquirement of Sun by Oracle. Everybody can take breaths, except perhaps the defenders of a free MySQL, despite the guarantees provided by Oracle...

We thus arrive at the conclusion of the continuing saga that was the purchase of Sun Microsystems by the Corporation named as Oracle. After the fears of the European Commission, after warning of U.S. senators, according to the guarantees made by Oracle about the future of MySQL and despite the online petitions, Brussels finally approve the merger, which will cost a mere 7 , 4 billion euros to Oracle, including debt and cash.

Brussels convinced

By validating the acquisition, the European Commission considers implicitly that competition is preserved on the market for databases and users are protected monopoly. Of course, the fiercest opponents of the merger will not be as easily convinced, though free alternatives exist in MySQL. Neelie Kroes, European Commissioner for Competition, said: "I am now certain that competition and innovation will be preserved in all the markets concerned.

It remains at this time to make out how Oracle will rearrange the Sun Microsystems, a business in which lots of sacrifices have been prepared in the past with almost 9 000 jobs lost throughout the past two years. As few analysts declare of innovative impending layoffs and dismissal of half the size of Sun to run, or 13 500 employees.