Oracle still wants PeopleSoft

Oracle Corp. officials held a conference call today to re-assert the company's intent to acquire PeopleSoft Inc., six months after it first made an offer.

"There is no merit to the idea that the deal is dead," said Charles Phillips, Oracle's executive vice president. "The transaction is progressing as expected."

Oracle is trying to persuade enough PeopleSoft shareholders to sell their stock to the company to give it controlling interest. The current offer is $19.50 a share, or about $7.3 billion.

The Justice Department is reviewing the deal for anti-trust considerations. Safra Catz, another Oracle executive vice president, said she is confident the department will allow the transaction to go forward.

Because it is a complicated acquisition in a complex marketplace, she said she is not surprised that Justice is taking some time to decide.