K
kirk jim
Another answer to that URBAN lie-guy.... whats his name.. I forget...
http://www.crn.com/software/198701022
After all the hype surrounding its January launch, Microsoft's new Vista
operating system has yet to brighten the outlook for PC makers and could
even lead to oversupplies for those who had built up inventory.
Top PC makers, such as Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Lenovo, may now have to
resort to sales of lower-margin computers in emerging markets such as China,
Eastern Europe and Latin America for their growth this year.
Featuring high-definition video and audio functions and three-dimensional
graphics, Vista is being billed as a major upgrade of its predecessor,
Windows XP.
But the software, which runs on more memory and superior graphic cards, has
not taken off as fast as some had hoped, leading to concerns of potential
inventory woes for makers of those products, analysts and industry players
said.
"Vista has had no big help," said Acer's president Gianfranco Lanci, adding
that PC makers are really not counting on Vista to drive high demands for
the industry.
Samsung Electronics, the world's top memory chip maker, also said that
demand for DRAM computer memory chips from Vista hasn't materialised as fast
as it had predicted.
"We had expected the 'Vista impact' on DRAM around April, but now we see it
being delayed into the second half," said Hwang Chang-gyu, semiconductor
business president of Samsung Electronics.
But many PC vendors were already skeptical on fresh demand from Vista even
before the product's launch in January, better preparing them for a
potential disappointment, said JP Morgan analyst Charles Guo.
Major PC players like Asustek Computer, also the world's top motherboard
maker, said Vista might have warmed up the market but significant results
have not been seen.
"We aren't seeing any effects yet and compatibility issues will take at
least six months to resolve," said an executive at Asustek, who declined to
be identified.
He added that many corporate customers -- who tend to buy in much larger
volumes than individual consumers and therefore can make a bigger impact --
were staying on the sidelines for now as individuals accounted for new
buying.
"We've carried out numerous surveys recently with IT managers and they've
all said they are not planning to migrate to Vista, and we are not expecting
a major influx anytime soon," said Bryan Ma, an analyst at IDC, expressing a
similar view.
Different forms of Microsoft's various Windows operating systems now run
more than 90 percent of the world's PCs.
Computer makers are now looking to strong buying from emerging markets such
as China, Eastern Europe and Latin America to boost business.
Dell announced earlier this week a super cheap computer costing as little as
2,599 yuan ($336) specifically for China, now the world's second largest PC
market by unit sales.
Growth Driver
"Emerging markets are still a key driver for growth in the PC sector. Global
PC shipments this year should grow by low double digits, in the 10 percent
range," said Acer's Lanci.
The comment by Acer, which is trying to overtake China's Lenovo as the
world's No. 3 PC maker, was in line with the outlook for the broader
industry.
IDC expects worldwide PC shipments to reach about 253 million units this
year, up 11 percent from 228 million in 2006. That 2007 growth rate is up
from the 9.6 percent posted last year.
Vista's newness aside, analysts also say the right computing platform, which
is needed to run the operating system smoothly, is a main factor that will
determine whether the software will be accepted in the near term.
"Intel's main Santa Rosa platform needed to support Vista features won't be
launched until May 10, and in the last five to 10 years, the biggest PC
driver is still price," said JP Morgan analyst Alvin Kwock.
Microsoft founder Bill Gates said last month that Vista has been well
received and that PC vendors have seen a nice lift in their sales.
A week before his comments, CEO Steve Ballmer had said that Vista would only
create a "small surge" in PC sales for its fiscal year starting in July, and
would not spur a big increase in normal growth rates.
"Vista was very popular in the first couple of weeks, but let's not just
focus on that. Dell and Hewlett-Packard don't even advertise much on PCs
with Vista," said JP Morgan's Kwock. (Additional reporting by Sophie Taylor
in Shanghai and So Eui Rhee in Seoul)
By: Sheena Lee
Copyright 2007 Reuters. Click for Restrictions
As per CMP's agreement with Reuters, this story will be removed from this
site after 30 days.
http://www.crn.com/software/198701022
After all the hype surrounding its January launch, Microsoft's new Vista
operating system has yet to brighten the outlook for PC makers and could
even lead to oversupplies for those who had built up inventory.
Top PC makers, such as Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Lenovo, may now have to
resort to sales of lower-margin computers in emerging markets such as China,
Eastern Europe and Latin America for their growth this year.
Featuring high-definition video and audio functions and three-dimensional
graphics, Vista is being billed as a major upgrade of its predecessor,
Windows XP.
But the software, which runs on more memory and superior graphic cards, has
not taken off as fast as some had hoped, leading to concerns of potential
inventory woes for makers of those products, analysts and industry players
said.
"Vista has had no big help," said Acer's president Gianfranco Lanci, adding
that PC makers are really not counting on Vista to drive high demands for
the industry.
Samsung Electronics, the world's top memory chip maker, also said that
demand for DRAM computer memory chips from Vista hasn't materialised as fast
as it had predicted.
"We had expected the 'Vista impact' on DRAM around April, but now we see it
being delayed into the second half," said Hwang Chang-gyu, semiconductor
business president of Samsung Electronics.
But many PC vendors were already skeptical on fresh demand from Vista even
before the product's launch in January, better preparing them for a
potential disappointment, said JP Morgan analyst Charles Guo.
Major PC players like Asustek Computer, also the world's top motherboard
maker, said Vista might have warmed up the market but significant results
have not been seen.
"We aren't seeing any effects yet and compatibility issues will take at
least six months to resolve," said an executive at Asustek, who declined to
be identified.
He added that many corporate customers -- who tend to buy in much larger
volumes than individual consumers and therefore can make a bigger impact --
were staying on the sidelines for now as individuals accounted for new
buying.
"We've carried out numerous surveys recently with IT managers and they've
all said they are not planning to migrate to Vista, and we are not expecting
a major influx anytime soon," said Bryan Ma, an analyst at IDC, expressing a
similar view.
Different forms of Microsoft's various Windows operating systems now run
more than 90 percent of the world's PCs.
Computer makers are now looking to strong buying from emerging markets such
as China, Eastern Europe and Latin America to boost business.
Dell announced earlier this week a super cheap computer costing as little as
2,599 yuan ($336) specifically for China, now the world's second largest PC
market by unit sales.
Growth Driver
"Emerging markets are still a key driver for growth in the PC sector. Global
PC shipments this year should grow by low double digits, in the 10 percent
range," said Acer's Lanci.
The comment by Acer, which is trying to overtake China's Lenovo as the
world's No. 3 PC maker, was in line with the outlook for the broader
industry.
IDC expects worldwide PC shipments to reach about 253 million units this
year, up 11 percent from 228 million in 2006. That 2007 growth rate is up
from the 9.6 percent posted last year.
Vista's newness aside, analysts also say the right computing platform, which
is needed to run the operating system smoothly, is a main factor that will
determine whether the software will be accepted in the near term.
"Intel's main Santa Rosa platform needed to support Vista features won't be
launched until May 10, and in the last five to 10 years, the biggest PC
driver is still price," said JP Morgan analyst Alvin Kwock.
Microsoft founder Bill Gates said last month that Vista has been well
received and that PC vendors have seen a nice lift in their sales.
A week before his comments, CEO Steve Ballmer had said that Vista would only
create a "small surge" in PC sales for its fiscal year starting in July, and
would not spur a big increase in normal growth rates.
"Vista was very popular in the first couple of weeks, but let's not just
focus on that. Dell and Hewlett-Packard don't even advertise much on PCs
with Vista," said JP Morgan's Kwock. (Additional reporting by Sophie Taylor
in Shanghai and So Eui Rhee in Seoul)
By: Sheena Lee
Copyright 2007 Reuters. Click for Restrictions
As per CMP's agreement with Reuters, this story will be removed from this
site after 30 days.
