Found this at the Zoo. Don't remember having seen it posted here. El November 10, 1999
Is Compaq A Dot-Com Company?
It's acting like one, with its new iPaq 'Internet appliance'
line and portal-provider strategy.
By Mary Jo Foley, Sm@rt Reseller
On Wednesday, Compaq Computer made clearer than ever its
intentions to reinvent itself as an Internet-centric company, with the
introduction of its iPaq line of Internet-ready PCs, plus a preview of
its plans to be a portal provider in its own right.
Compaq officials coined a new acronym, "B2E," or business to
enterprise, to describe the target market for its line of legacy-free PCs
and its forthcoming set of vertical portals.
The less-than-10-pound iPaq (code-named Vista) will begin shipping
in volume in the first quarter of next year, with selected Compaq
customers able to obtain limited deliveries before the end of this
year. The iPaqs will start at about $499 and come in four flavors:
Pentium III- or Celeron-based legacy-free, meaning free of
unneeded serial and parallel ports; and Pentium III- or
Celeron-based legacy-light, or including support for some legacy
devices.
CEO and president Michael Capellas acknowledged that "The kinds
of things we used to build--things that attached to the corporate
network--are changing. There's a growing need for simpler,
task-specific devices."
Compaq intends to "redefine" the PC, Capellas told press and
financial analysts attending the iPaq launch, by replacing
multifunction, high-maintenance desktops with simpler form factors
that are customizable, wireless-ready and have 12-month minimum
life cycles. Compaq will build the boxes in Houston, and move them
primarily via the Internet and other "inventory-less" direct channels,
as well as through its dealer/agent programs.
Compaq's not tolling the death knell for the desktop PC, nor
attempting to breathe life into network computers. Instead, it is
attempting to apply the EasyPC concepts, which it pioneered with
Microsoft and Intel in the consumer space, to the business/enterprise
space, officials insisted.
A Radical Departure
While Compaq as an Internet-appliance pusher is evidence of a new
direction for the company, its plans to field a series of enterprise
portals marks an even more radical new business model for the
hardware maker.
Compaq is staffing up with Internet specialists and content
creators--as well as forming new partnerships with dot-com
companies--to launch, in the coming year, a number of portals
focused around "communities of interest." At the iPaq launch,
Compaq officials said the company already has established
relationships with CMGi, Siebel Systems and American Express, to
provide portal content and development assistance.
The first of Compaq's B2E portals, due in Q1 2000, will be aimed at
the IT community and will provide a single destination for content,
information, services and tools--a mix of relevant and customizable
professional and personal Internet content. Following the launch of
its IT portal, Compaq has plans for portals for the procurement,
finance, sales and human-resource communities, according to
officials.
A Little Help From Its Friends
Compaq is working with Microsoft to supply underlying framework
technology and possibly some of Microsoft's MSN content for its
various portals, said Compaq officials. Rick Belluzzo, Microsoft's
recently appointed VP of its consumer and commerce group, was on
hand for the Compaq iPaq launch, but offered no specifics on
Microsoft's role as a Compaq-portal partner.
But one of Compaq's newfound friends, CMGi, was more
forthcoming about the myriad ways it is assisting Compaq in
becoming an Internet-content company. CMGi president and CEO
Dave Wetherell, who also participated in the iPaq launch, offered
examples of a number of CMGi properties with which Compaq may
dabble.
In addition to offering Compaq access to the AltaVista search
engine, which CMGi recently purchased from Compaq, Wetherell
said that CMGi also can provide Compaq with bandwidth via its
NaviNet investment; DHTML-portal content from its MyWay.Com
venture; distance-learning capabilities via its WebCT property;
integration services from CMGi Solutions; business-to-business
online-marketplace services via BizBuy.Com and Intelligent Digital.
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