Check out the last paragraph:
Windows Vista Launch
Lifts PC Sales
By CHRISTOPHER LAWTON
SAN FRANCISCO -- U.S. personal computer buyers took to the stores to
buy new systems in the first week that Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Vista
operating system was available, according to data from research firm
Current Analysis, Inc.
The firm said that unit sales of PCs at U.S. retailers for the week
ending Feb. 3 jumped 67% versus a year ago and 173% from the prior week,
when Vista was not available. The research data also showed that
consumers preferred Vista Premium, the higher end version of the software, to
Vista Basic, with Premium accounting for 70% of the computer sales in
the first week of its launch, the firm said.
Revenue at the retail chains tracked by Current Analysis rose 54.4% in
the week compared with the same period last year.
Samir Bhavnani, research director at Current Analysis, called the
launch of Vista a success, but warned that it's too early to tell how Vista
will impact PC sales. "The substantial increase in unit sales as well
as revenues was impressive...but the key thing is it's one week of
data," Mr. Bhavnani said.
This growth spike following Microsoft's launch of its first major
overhaul of Windows in over five years is a welcome relief for PC
manufacturers. The Vista operating system is bigger than its predecessors, and
requires a computer with more memory and high-capacity hard drives. With
unit sales growth slowing in the U.S. -- and average prices falling
rapidly -- PC companies had hoped Vista would boost sales of more
profitable computers.
But the delay by Microsoft in shipping the software for the consumer
market until after the holiday season forced vendors to slash prices to
spur sales in advance of Vista's release. The last three weeks of
January showed declining PC sales and revenue versus that same time last
year, according to the research.
Mr. Bhavnani added that Hewlett-Packard Co. was the big winner for the
week, selling more than half of all PCs in retail stores.
Write to Christopher Lawton at christopher.lawton@wsj.com |
