Bill Watkins

Silicon-Based Light Bulbs a Big Step Closer, Startup Says

Don Clark, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on March 9, 2011 at 12:00 am PT

Silicon has shaken up many industries. A startup called Bridgelux says the next big target will be light bulbs. The Livermore, Calif., company on Tuesday claimed a breakthrough in using the material to fabricate light-emitting diodes, the new-wave components that are finding a place in many lighting applications because of their superior energy-efficiency and longevity.

Investor Jitters a Factor in Failed Seagate Deal

Therese Poletti, Senior Columnist, MarketWatch, Tech Tales in News on December 2, 2010 at 1:22 pm PT

A few years ago, former Seagate Technology PLC Chief Executive Bill Watkins made an analogy comparing the hard-disk industry to Rodney Dangerfield. “I think it’s unfair not to respect a commodity,” Watkins told Newsweek in 2007. “There’s a tremendous amount of technology in this commodity.”

Seagate Defrags Workforce, Executive Team

John Paczkowski in News on January 12, 2009 at 5:00 am PT

“Terrible.” That was Seagate CEO Bill Watkins’s (at right, doing his Dr. Octopus impression) one-word description of the disk drive maker’s December sales last week–and apparently one of his final public comments as Chief Executive as well. This morning Seagate said that Watkins is handing the CEO reins over to Chairman Stephen Luczo and that the two will confer over the next week to “determine what role, if any, Mr. Watkins will have at the company going forward.”

Seagate Shares Hit Post-IPO Low After Q4 Revenue Warning; CEO Watkins Says Some Rivals "In Really Bad Shape"

Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily in News on October 22, 2008 at 5:41 pm PT

Seagate CEO Bill Watkins is feeling pretty good about the hard disk market. His Asian competitors–mostly Toshiba, Fujitsu and Samsung–are in bad shape, he says, and may have to work together in order to survive. External drive sales are doing well, but the solid-state drive market isn’t gaining the traction that was predicted. Could end up being good news for Seagate.