WSJ October 25, 1999
Compaq Will Increases Focus
On Wireless Devices in Europe
By a WALL STREET JOURNAL Staff Reporter
In a further sign of how wireless technology is changing the personal computer industry, Compaq Computer Corp. said Friday it was increasing its focus on special-purpose personal computers and handheld devices in Europe and planning to distribute them through wireless-service providers.
Company Profile: Compaq Computer
The PC maker is negotiating with European telecommunications operators to have them sell Compaq handheld computers, alongside mobile Internet services the operators are planning to roll out. The computers would be compatible with the global system for mobile communications, or GSM, a digital system based on the pan-European standard.
For consumers, "you go for the service you're interested in, and then the secondary consideration is the device," said Kasper Rorsted, vice president for the commercial PC and electronic-commerce group at Compaq's Europe, Middle East, and Africa unit.
That is a far cry from the traditional PC sales model, where services like online access had little to do with the decision to buy a specific model computer. Mr. Rorsted said wireless Internet-service providers will likely begin offering discounts on handheld devices that can connect to the Inter net, much as mobile operators subsidize the purchase of cellular handsets.
Within the next six months, Compaq also plans to release low-cost network computers geared to specific tasks, such as accessing the Internet instantly, without having to wait for a whole system to boot up.
"We're saying let's go out and proactively change this business model, even if there's a slight cannibalization of our own business," Mr. Rorsted said. |
