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Technology Stocks : Compaq -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kenneth R Miller who wrote (13456)	1/13/1998 6:01:00 PM
From: Night Writer	Respond to of 97611

Ken, This report looks good to me. Sorry if already posted. Posting before reading in case bonk catches me again. NW Subj: PC Server Market on Track for Continued Success... Date: 98-01-13 08:09:25 EST PC Server Market on Track for Continued Success According to IDC Research Popularity of NT Helps Drive Market FRAMINGHAM, Mass., Jan. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- The PC server market experienced a solid 1997 as both shipments and revenues saw substantial gains. Estimates show revenues jumped 35 percent to exceed $10.5 billion on shipments of 1.75 million units, according to new research from International Data Corporation (IDC). IDC's new report, 1997 PC Server Year in Review: The Strong Get Stronger, reveals PC server revenue gains are even more significant given that the Entry Server market was up only 19 percent, the Midrange Server market just two percent, and the High-End Server market actually declined four percent, The forces driving the surge in PC server adoption include demand by small businesses, popularity of NT, and continuing departmental and increasing central IS procurements. IDC defines a PC server as: Intel-based (x86) machines that are expressly built, marketed, and sold as servers. These systems can be either uni- or multiprocessor. They run standard, off-the-shelf network operating systems (e.g., Netware, NT, SCO Unix, etc.) and have a U.S. base price of less than $25,000. The United States was the largest market for PC servers in 1997, accounting for more than 35 percent of the worldwide PC server market. Western Europe also continues its rapid acceptance of PC servers as NT adoption helped boost growth in Northern European countries. Japan had a volatile year with a soft second quarter. "This unsteadiness in Japan can be traced to a Japanese tax law, enacted in April 1997, that effectively raised prices on computer products," said Amir Ahari, analyst for IDC's Commercial Systems and Servers program. "Vendors dropped prices to off-set the tax increase and help the market get back to its feet." PC Server Vendors The top four PC server vendors continued to dominate in 1997: -- Compaq remains the number one vendor in both U.S. and worldwide markets. IDC believes the company's worldwide revenues will pass $3.7 billion in 1997. Compaq's long-term goal is to be a $50 billion company by the year 2000. -- Hewlett-Packard's growth comes from a strong customer base and solid VAR network. Overall, demand for HP's NetServer E-class and NetServer LH gave the company solid momentum in the low-end PC server market. -- IBM re-evaluated its PC server strategy with the launch of its Netfinity product line. The company's worldwide factory revenue grew 24 percent, although it did lose a point of market share in 1997. -- Dell is the leading direct distributor of PC servers. Dell experienced an astounding 181 percent worldwide factory revenue growth in 1997 to capture revenue share of six percent. Not all vendors are reaping the rewards of strong PC server market growth. Apple, NCR, Olivetti, and Acer all continue to lose market share. These vendors have not invested in key areas to be successful in the PC sever space. Overall, IDC predicts 1998 will be a transition year for PC servers. As customers anticipate new high-end solutions from Intel and Microsoft, PC servers may experience slower growth at the high end. However, cost benefits and the continued growth of NT will keep this market growing throughout the year. To order a copy of 1997 PC Server Year in Review: The Strong Get Stronger (IDC #B15114) please contact Cheryl Toffel at 508-935-4389. About IDC Headquartered in Framingham, Mass., International Data Corporation provides IT market research and consulting to more than 3,900 high-technology customers around the world. With a global network of 300 analysts in more than 40 countries, IDC is the industry's most comprehensive resource on worldwide IT markets, products, vendors, and geographies. IDC/LINK, an IDC subsidiary, researches and analyzes the home computing market, leading-edge technologies in telecommunications and new media, and the convergence of computing and consumer electronics. IDC's World Wide Web site (http://www.idc.com) contains additional company information and recent news releases and offers full-text searching of recent research. IDC is a division of International Data Group, the world's leading IT media, research and exposition company. NOTE: All product and company names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. SOURCE IDC CO: IDC ST: Massachusetts IN: CPR MLM SU: 01/13/98 08:04 EST prnewswire.com