GE confirms plans to exit appliance business

[BigDaddy44]

Source: Associated Press

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (AP) -- General Electric Co. said Friday it plans to sell or spin-off its century-old appliance business.

The Fairfield, Conn., industrial conglomerate said in a statement the move is part of an ongoing plan to exit "slower growth and more volatile businesses."

The company is planning a strategic review that could result in an outright sale, a strategic partnership or a spin-off to shareholders.

The Louisville, Ky.-based business, which makes refrigerators, air conditioners and ovens, generates most of its revenue in the U.S., leaving its results dependent on "the rise and fall of a single market," GE said.



Read more: http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080516/general_electric_appliance.html

[Submariner]

1. Why not?

There is probably a heckuva a lot more money in the military industrial complex biz anyway engining up military planes, ships and submarines.

And controlling the news through it's wholly-owned subsidiary NBC Snooze is probably not a bad deal either.

[truthisfreedom]

2. Goodbye GE "meatball."

[FreepFryer]

3. The 'toaster division' has been little more than a front for nuclear/arms dealing for decades. (n/t)

[bluesmail]

4. warprofiteers

[Kittycat]

5. Crap!

We have GE Monogram appliances. I really like them too - but I hope to god I'll be able to get them serviced if I need to. There is no way I want to pay to replace them anytime soon (or ever).

[AndyTiedye]

16. Our GE Dryer Lasted Less Than 10 Years

[Tesha]

17. Service (and service parts) is a lucrative business; it (and they) will be available for years. (NT)

[Magleetis]

6. Killing machines

are much more lucrative. Why do we love to kill each other so much?

[orleans]

7. figures. why dick around with the little stuff when you can make

a killing doing war instead.

[Newsjock]

8. Poor Jack ...

Jack Donaghy goes to work for Homeland Security, and all hell breaks loose at GE. What will the Vice President of East Coast Television and Microwave Oven Programming do now?

[TommyO]

9. It's sad, but this was one of my first thoughts as well

[high density]

15. Sheinhardt Wig Company should help GE out

It's so sad that they're letting this company they own go in the crapper.

[Ian David]

10. They make enough money off their war proffiteering now. And who needs consumers..

when the consumers are broke?

[DainBramaged]

11. They outsourced their appliance manufacturing to Mexico years ago

We lose another brand to "stockholder profits".

[InkAddict]

12. Waterboarding washboards must be selling like hotcakes...

New corrugation design that stimulates the spinal column seen to be the secret to more effective interrogations.

http://www.columbuswashboard.com/history.htm

[deminks]

13. Why not? McCain guarantees their war profiteering for "100 years" nt

[high density]

14. Rise and fall of a single market... The US Market.

Sounds anti-American to me, betting against the US market. I'm sure they had no problems with the rip roaring appliance market during the housing boom.

[jmowreader]

18. I think they're doing this for two reasons...

Reason 1 is that LG is kicking their ass in this sector. Today's field trip: Go to Home Depot, where both LG and GE are sold, and compare the two brands. LG's stuff is simply more exciting than GE's. GE makes a good low-midrange appliance, but low-midrange isn't where the money is. Put GE and LG washers next to each other. GE offers you a white box with three to five knobs on it. LG counters with a blue box, or a red one, with easy-operating buttons, an LCD panel and lots more features.

And reason 2 is that the consumer products sector SUX. A customer who buys thousand-amp breakers doesn't want six new features added every year to keep him from going to the competition, and he doesn't bring the breaker back if there's a quarter-inch scratch on it. He wants a breaker that's just like the one he bought two months ago for a different part of the plant.

I'm just glad they didn't use the "focus on core business" line most companies use when they shed a not-so-profitable business. GE's core business is making things and selling them to people.