SiliconBeat

According to the Wall Street Journal:

“In its response, BEA said the company “is worth substantially more to Oracle, to others and, importantly, to our shareholders” than Oracle’s $17-a-share offer. It asked for more information from Oracle, and said it would review the bid.”

And what say Carl Icahn? In an interview with Reuters:

Icahn said the offer from Oracle Chief Executive Larry Ellison may spare BEA from threats he has made to wage a proxy battle if the BEA board does not put the software maker up for sale.

“I think this will save a lot of … aggravation,” he said. “I think the best way to win the war is not to fight it.”

Speaking of winning, the two folks at BEA who are most likely to benefit from the deal are also people who might have the hardest time selling. Here are their most recent stock holdings, according to Thomson Financial, and what they’d be worth at $17 per share:

• CEO and founder Alfred Chuang: 2,743,680 shares, $46,642,560
• Director Dean Morton: 570,478 shares, $96,98,126