Akia plans PC sales in America (9 SEP 98)
austin360.com:80/news/09sep/18/akia18.htm
Akia, a company that has thrived selling space-saving personal computers
in Japan and other Asian countries, announced today its plans to sell in
North America from its Austin headquarters.
The company, whose American unit is headed by David Register, a
former Dell Computer engineer and executive, will market desktop and
laptop PCs that have flat-panel, liquid crystal display monitors. It will
begin shipping computers Oct. 18.
The 17-inch PC monitors have a viewable screen of 15.9 inches and a
depth of 4 to 5 inches. A typical 17-inch computer monitor has a viewable
screen of about 15 inches and a depth of almost 17 inches.
The LCD displays also use less power than traditional monitors but offer
comparable displays.
In Japan, the company has been able to rank among giants like Dell, its
neighbor in North Austin, Compaq and IBM. The company had sales of
about $11 million a month last year. Akia, which is privately held, was
estimated to have earned pretax profits of $7 million on sales of $200
million in 1996.
"We're positioning this for workplaces where appearance is important and
in modern high-density offices," Register said.
Register said the slim computers and monitors will free up desk space and
will be marketed to medical professionals as well as executives who want
an attractive PC on their desk.
"Have you ever seen the back of a 17-inch CRT monitor?" Register
asked. "It's not a nice thing to be looking at across the desk."
Register worked at Dell for seven years. While there, he was appointed
the first Dell Fellow for his work on new technologies. Register also
started a technical consulting firm, Vertex Enterprises, before joining Akia.
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