An article from Toronto Computers December:
The Christmas gifts Michael Cowpland would like to see on many wish lists undoubtedly include a video-enabled network computer, with some graphics thrown in for good measure. Given some tough financial news this year-including the US$32-million loss reported at the end of the third quarter for Cowpland's company, Corel Corp.-Canada's software giant is counting on his own Yuletide gift: a better 1998. To that end, Cowpland is banking on past successes and future possibilities. The Video Network Computer, recently released by Corel's subsidiary, Corel Computer Corp., positions the Ottawa-based company at the starting gate of the NC market. Futhermore, its VNC, which sells between US$700 and US$1,000 depending on the model, taps into Corel's revised Java strategy, called Conexus. Instead of creating Java software suites for individual PC use- Corel' original plan- Conexus will reside on a central server, which the VNC can access. Futhermore, the fact that Corel's NC comes with videoconference capabilities makes it unique in the marketplace and can only help position Corel as a frontrunner, says Amy Wohl, a hightech analyst based in Narberth, Pennsylvania. "They're the only company that has combined a network computer with application software on a server," she says. "Maybe they can make their play out of that combination." But while Corel has jumped on the NC bandwagon, the company is quick to reinforce its loyalty to its eight-year-old "critical flagship," says Corel's newly appointed senior vice president of sales, Don Sylvester. "The graphics side of our business is the five-star foundation of our business." With a 75 to 80 per cent global market share in the number of illustration software units shipped using the Windows system, it's no wonder Corel isn't about to abandon its CorelDraw product line-witness the recent launch of CorelDraw 8, with a new Mac version set for release in February.
By Christopher Guly
SW |
