Word: acer
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...ACER Bend with the Wind...
...Selling computers is a tough business at the best of times. These are the worst of times - global computer sales slumped nearly 7% in the first quarter of 2009. But PC maker Acer has bucked the trend. According to research firm IDC, Acer's PC shipments rose 10% in the first quarter of 2009 from the same period a year earlier, lifting Acer's global market share to 11.9%, up from 10.1% the year before. In notebook computers - Acer's speciality - the company claimed 17% of the world market in the first quarter, enough to make it the world...
...Acer CEO J.T. Wang chalks up the results to his company's willingness to adapt to unpleasant market realities. While competitors are trying to protect their profit margins by keeping prices of PCs stable, Acer, recognizing that consumers have less to spend nowadays, has been pushing low-cost computers including netbooks, shrunken portable PCs costing just a few hundred dollars. Wang says that computers priced under $500 are taking a larger share of overall sales; according to IDC, the average selling price of an Acer machine in the first quarter dropped to $611 from $855 a year earlier. "People...
...Acer these days, R&D is focused on reducing sticker shock. In May, for example, Acer launched new line of ultra-thin notebooks that can run for more than eight hours without recharging yet cost as little as $699. Wang claims these full-featured machines are unique in the market, and that it will take six to nine months for his competition to catch up. "It's not just low price," Wang says. "There is innovation in the product as well." Acer is entering the cell-phone business, and Wang makes no excuses for churning out low-margin netbooks, considered...
...Acer's lowball strategy is not without trade-offs. Despite market-share gains, revenues in the first quarter fell 6.5% from a year earlier to $3.5 billion, while operating income sank 6.1% to $75.8 million. (Wang still expects Acer to match or slightly exceed its 2008 operating profits in 2009.) Bryan Ma, a computer-industry analyst at IDC in Singapore, says Acer risks tarnishing its brand in the long run. But during the recession, Ma says, Acer's product mix will help it outperform. "They're in the right place at the right time," he says...