Mixed messages

One requirement is secrecy; any hint of a deal will send the market into a tizzy and open the companies to accusations of insider trading and the like. The process has to take its course. But it's interesting to see just how the partners position their 'courtship' when news does come out. The current 'dance' between CSR and Microchip is a nice example. CSR, in its release, said 'the price proposed by Microchip has been rejected and the Board is considering its options for the company'. All fair and good. Microchip, meanwhile, said 'the discussions between the parties are at a very preliminary stage and there can be no certainty that an offer will be made, nor as to the terms on which any offer might be made, or that any other type of transaction will be entered into with CSR or as to the terms, structure or form of any such transaction'. So CSR has rejected an offer which Microchip appears to say it hasn't made. A complex and sensitive process indeed.