Former Apple Execs Join Palm

Palm stockholders have approved a proposal that will let Elevation Partners - a venture capital firm whose principals include former Apple CFO Fred Anderson - invest $325 million in the ailing PDA and smartphone manufacturer. That translates into a 25 percent equity stake in Palm.

The company will also be able to borrow up to $400 million in associated debt financing and make a cash contribution to current Palm stockholders of $9.00 per share.

What's more, as a condition of the investment, Palm will appoint former Apple senior vice president Jon Rubinstein as executive chairman of the company's Board of Directors. Anderson and Roger McNamee will both join Palm's board.

The news comes at the end of another string of disappointing Palm-related news items. The company's stock has recently been downgraded by analysts, citing slipping demand for its Treo smartphones (amidst increased competition on AT&T's network from the iPhone). Recently Palm cancelled the launch of Foleo, a laptop-like device designed to complement the Treo, months after CEO Ed Colligan's introduction of the new device in May.