Editing Michael Cowpland

{{short description|British businessman}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{BLP sources|date=November 2009}}
{{Infobox person
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1943|4|23}}
| birth_place = [[Bexhill-on-Sea]], [[Sussex]], England
| name       = Michael Cowpland
| occupation = Entrepreneur and business executive
| known for = Founder of [[Corel]]
}}
'''Michael Cowpland''' (born April 23, 1943 in [[Bexhill-on-Sea]]) is a British-born Canadian businessman. He is the founder and one-time president, chairman and CEO of [[Corel]], a Canadian software company.<ref>{{cite news |title=End of an era: Terry Matthews, board members bid farewell to Mitel following $2B acquisition {{!}} Ottawa Business Journal |url=https://www.obj.ca/article/terry-matthews-out-mitel-following-close-2b-acquisition |work=www.obj.ca}}</ref>

==Career==
===Mitel===
Cowpland worked for Bell Northern Research (later part of [[Nortel Networks]]), then [[MicroSystems International]]. In 1973, Cowpland and [[Terry Matthews]] founded [[Mitel|Mitel Corporation]], a company that developed and sold electronic [[Private branch exchange|PBX]] systems. Initial success made both founders millionaires.<ref>{{cite news |last1=James Bagnall |title=The Capital Builders: A who's who of tech giants who not only survived – but thrived |url=https://ottawacitizen.com/technology/tech-biz/the-capital-builders-a-whos-who-of-tech-giants-who-not-only-survived-but-thrived |work=Ottawa Citizen |date=13 August 2017}}</ref> Sales peaked at $250 million, but over-expansion and development problems saw the company bought by [[British Telecom]]. Both Cowpland and Matthews left the company in 1984 amid disagreements with the owners.{{citation needed|date=May 2020}}

===Corel===
Matthews went on to found [[Newbridge Networks]], while Cowpland launched '''Co'''wpland '''Re'''search '''L'''aboratory (soon [[Corel]]) in Ottawa in 1985. At first, the company sold [[Desktop publishing|DTP]] workstations, but success did not arrive until the launch of the graphics software [[CorelDRAW]] in 1989.

In 1996, he offered a challenge to [[Microsoft]] with a move into [[productivity software]], acquiring [[WordPerfect]] from [[Novell]] for $158 million. However this was unsuccessful as Microsoft managed to get many new computers loaded with [[Microsoft Word]] along with [[Windows]].<ref name=financialpost>{{cite news|url=http://business.financialpost.com/2013/11/08/blackberry-ltd-isnt-the-first-canadian-tech-company-to-go-from-rockstar-to-near-ruin/?__lsa=2ab0-85d5 |title=BlackBerry Ltd isn't the first Canadian tech company to go from rockstar to (near) ruin |date=November 8, 2013 |newspaper=Financial Post}}</ref> The company also made unsuccessful forays into [[Computer-aided design|CAD]], [[Video teleconference|videoconferencing]], [[Java (programming language)|Java]], [[Linux]] and other developments.

He was investigated by the [[Ontario Securities Commission]] (OSC) in 1999–2000 regarding allegations that he had used insider information to sell $20 million in Corel shares at $8/share shortly before the company posted disappointing results. The two sides settled the case in 2003, with Cowpland agreeing to pay $575,000.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.osc.gov.on.ca/Enforcement/Proceedings/RAD/rad_20031212_cowpland.jsp |title=Ontario Securities Commission - Order - in the Matter of M.C.J.C. Holdings Inc. And Michael Cowpland - CVMO |accessdate=2006-07-02 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070503051807/http://www.osc.gov.on.ca/Enforcement/Proceedings/RAD/rad_20031212_cowpland.jsp |archivedate=2007-05-03 }}</ref>
Subsequent to Cowpland's alleged insider sale at $8, Corel shares hit a peak of $60/share around November 1999, during the height of the Linux boom when [[Corel Linux|Corel's Desktop Linux]] was seen to be a potential rival to Microsoft Windows.<ref name="cbc">{{cite news |last1=Staff |title=Cowpland holding company fined $1 million for illegal insider trading |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/cowpland-holding-company-fined-1-million-for-illegal-insider-trading-1.307390 |work=CBC News |date=12 February 2002}}</ref>

Michael resigned as Corel's CEO in August 2000.<ref name="cbc" />

After an unsuccessful attempt to buy [[Borland]] with a view to creating a critical mass for Linux, Cowpland left Corel in August 2000, and moved on to buy control of ZIM corporation, a database and mobile content company which is listed on the NASDAQ bulletin board (ZIMCF).

==Personal life==
[[Image:Cowpland mansion.JPG|right|thumb|250px|Cowpland's unique home in [[Rockcliffe Park]], [[Ottawa]], Ontario.]]
He was married to his first wife Darlene until 1991 when they divorced. They have two daughters, Paula and Christine. In 1992, he married his second wife, Marlen Cowpland. The couple live in a $14-million 1,800-square-metre mansion in  [[Rockcliffe Park, Ontario]].<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?q=Marlen%20Cowpland%20diamond-pierced%20navel&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tab=wp | title=Random Excess: The Wild Ride of Michael Cowpland and Corel | author=Ross Laver | publisher=[[Viking Press]] | year=1998 | isbn=0-670-87972-X | accessdate=November 19, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Ian Austen |title=Tracking down the enigma of Silicon Valley North |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/rob-magazine/30-years-silicon-valley-north-and-its-enigma/article19288247/ |work=The Globe And Mail |date=24 June 2014}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cowpland, Michael}}

[[Category:1943 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century Canadian businesspeople]]
[[Category:20th-century English businesspeople]]
[[Category:21st-century Canadian businesspeople]]
[[Category:21st-century English businesspeople]]
[[Category:Businesspeople from Ottawa]]
[[Category:Canadian chairpersons of corporations]]
[[Category:Canadian computer businesspeople]]
[[Category:Canadian technology chief executives]]
[[Category:Canadian technology company founders]]
[[Category:Carleton University alumni]]
[[Category:Corel]]
[[Category:English chief executives]]
[[Category:English emigrants to Canada]]
[[Category:Nortel employees]]
[[Category:People from Bexhill-on-Sea]]