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Technology Stocks : CYRIX / NSM -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Craig Freeman who wrote (30694)	12/21/1998 8:32:00 PM
From: FJB	Read Replies (4) \| Respond to of 33344

www1.newsalert.com RESTON, Va., Dec. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Spurred by lower prices, PC sales jumped sharply in retail stores in November, according to PC Data's recently released November Retail Hardware Report. Retail store unit sales of Windows- based PCs were up 31.7 percent over November 1997 figures. PC average prices, before rebates and without monitors, declined to a new low of $992 , which is the first time prices have fallen below $1,000. This represents is a 7 percent drop from the October 1998 price of $1,066 and a -- 26 percent decline from November 1997 pricing of $1,340. "While aggressive competition between retailers, OEMs and component suppliers as well as the holiday seasonal rush helped spur this decline," said Stephen Baker PC Data's senior hardware analyst, "the most prominent culprit was the rise of sub-$800 computers." Sub-$800 computers accounted for 33 percent of sales in November, up from 28 percent in October and 20 percent year-to-date. On a year-over-year basis, November unit sales of sub-$800 computers generated more than 11 times November 1997 volumes. Overall sub-$1,000 PCs were 58.5 percent of the market, the highest total of the year and far above last November's 33.8 percent. Unit sales of sub- $1,000 PCs were up more than 128 percent over last year. Unit sales of PCs priced over $1,500, which accounted for only 10 percent of sales last month, declined 52 percent from November 1997. Compaq was once again the leader in the retail marketplace with 27.3 percent of unit sales, an increase of 16.6 percent over 1997. Packard Bell- NEC was number two with almost 22 percent of retail unit sales, its highest share since November 1997. Hewlett Packard was the third leading supplier with 19.9 percent and IBM was fourth with 11.8 percent. Packard Bell-NEC was the number one vendor of sub-$1,000 PCs in November, with 36.3 percent of that market. Sales of sub-$1,000 PCs made up more than 90 percent of Packard Bell's sales in November. Additionally, Packard Bell's sales were propelled by its new-found reliance on processors from National Semiconductor and Advanced Micro Devices. Sales of PCs based on these processors accounted for 80 percent of Packard Bell-NEC's sales in November, up from zero earlier in the year. AMD continued to be the leading choice for processors in sub-$1,000 PCs. Last month, systems powered by AMD processors accounted for 37 percent of retail PC sales for sub-$1,000 products. National Semiconductor, on the strength of its partnership with Packard Bell-NEC took 30.1 percent of sales, continuing its steady rise in this market. Intel-based PCs accounted for 27.7 percent, essentially the same share they garnered during the past four months. AMD's K6-2 processor was the leading processor choice for sub-$1,000 PCs for the fourth consecutive month with 35.3 percent share in November. PCs based on the National Semiconductor MII processor accounted for 30 percent of sales, and Celeron-based PCs had approximately 22 percent. Based in Reston, VA, PC Data has been providing point-of-sale data since 1991 and has become the only comprehensive source of software and hardware sales information. The company provides software and hardware vendors with the point-of-sale data and analysis which forms the underpinning of their strategic decision-making process. PC Data supplies sales information to more than 800 software and hardware firms, which account for nearly 95 percent of total computer industry sales. The company's latest initiatives include entering the European market and launching a software usage and Internet monitoring service called @PCData. In addition to tracking software sales through retailers PC Data also tracks retail computer hardware sales as well as hardware and software sales through educational resellers, corporate resellers and distributors. PC Data can be contacted via its Web site at www.pcdata.com or by phone at 703-435-1025. SOURCE PC Data