In November 1997, EP told the world he was taking CPQ Internet. I have to wonder how many people really thought he would do it. His speech is worth posting for reviewing in light of the current news.
NW
Eckhard Pfeiffer
Keynote
Comdex
November 16, 1998
I appreciate the fact that so many of you could join us today.
I understand that this is the first box-lunch keynote in Comdex history.
So now we know how many people at Comdex really believe that there is such as thing as a free lunch.
Of course, it's not exactly free.
You have to stick around for my speech to get your lunch.
* * * * *
The video you just watched and the story it tells may be imaginary . . . but the solutions it presents are not.
The New World of Computing is real . . . and it is all around us.
Doctors today are using the Internet to remotely monitor and diagnose patients. In fact, Houston recently was the site of the first live Webcast of open-heart surgery.
And the Internet is giving our young people new tools to explore their world . . . and expand their imaginations.
We have moved - in a remarkably short time - from the neighborhood scale of local area networks . . . to the planetary scale of the Internet.
And that has changed the way we look at computing.
The PC, for example, is no longer just a processor of information. It is now a window to an ever-larger world of information . . . communication . . . and entertainment.
In fact, the Internet is now the number one reason that consumers buy a home computer. That has changed the way we at Compaq design our PCs - from the easy access Internet buttons on our Presario keyboards . . . to the high-speed broadband modems included in our newest products, which we are introducing today.
In the business world, today's networked companies are quickly evolving into tomorrow's global inter-networked enterprises . . . linking customers, partners and suppliers in an extended, virtual corporation.
All of this supports Compaq's vision of the future of computing - a world where virtually all information is on line . . . and anyone can get the information they need . . . from anywhere . . . at any time . . . using almost any device.
* * * * *
The rapid emergence of this new world of computing is causing companies of every size to take a close look not only at how they do business . . . but also at how their customers do business.
This is no less true at Compaq, where we have a history of challenging our own success . . . and of reinventing our company to take advantage of new opportunities.
And that is what I want to talk about today:
First, how Compaq is transforming itself as a company
Second, how we are redefining the way we do business by offering customers greater choice
And third, how we are helping both businesses and consumers take advantage of this New World of Computing.
* * * * *
With all the changes Compaq has been through during the past year, customers frequently ask me: Who is Compaq today?
And it's a fair question.
Customers know we are the PC industry leader.
They know we acquired Tandem and Digital.
They may know that we are the largest manufacturer of computers in the world . . . that in 1997, Compaq shipped 11.5 million computers - 4 million more than IBM . . . and 7 million more than Michael Dell.
But they want to know what that means for them.
So let me answer the question with a brief description of who we are . . . and an explanation of how we have transformed the company during the past two years.
* * * * *
Compaq today is a global IT company offering a broad portfolio of products, services and solutions . . . to customers ranging from consumers to the largest global corporations.
And we're doing it the way we always have - with useful innovation . . . strong partnerships . . . a commitment to accelerating industry standards . . . and a relentless focus on helping customers get the most out of computing.
Compaq is the PC leader - a position we definitely plan to keep. But we are no longer just a PC company. We are also an enterprise computing company . . . offering Web-enabled solutions to any company . . . of any size . . . on a global scale.
We are no longer just a vendor of boxes. Today we are a strategic IT partner - with the account expertise . . . solutions experience . . . and service capabilities necessary to help customers solve the most complex IT problems.
We are also a customer-driven company.
We work closely with channel partners . . . but Compaq is taking ownership of our customer relationships . . . and accountability for meeting customers needs.
Our customer choice model - which I will talk about in more detail in a moment - enables Compaq to do business the way our customers want to do business.
Compaq is also well known for its products. But we are focusing more than ever on solutions - drawing on the best of both Compaq and our partners.
Finally . . . we have dramatically increased our ability to deliver services to our customers.
Compaq used to rely solely on channel partners to provide service.
With Compaq Services, we have more than 29,000 service and support professionals deployed around the world - complemented by more than 30,000 service partners.
So we have transformed Compaq from a PC company to a global IT company . . . with strengths and capabilities that no PC-only company can match.
* * * * *
And that brings me to my next point - how Compaq is redefining the way we do business.
If you saw reports on our announcement in New York last week, you already know that Compaq is going direct . . . with new products for small and medium sized businesses.
But we're doing more than embracing the direct model. We are extending beyond it . . . with a business model focused on customer choice.
What does customer choice mean?
It means Compaq will provide products, services and solutions to our customers the way they want . . . when they want . . . and where they want.
Our goal here is not to simply match Dell, Gateway and the other direct vendors.
It is to create a customer relationship model that is superior to any of our competitors . . . one that enables our customers to do business with Compaq the way they choose to do business.
* * * * *
Our new family of Prosignia notebooks, desktops and servers are designed specifically for the SMB market.
And these are great products.
But what's really new is that they can be ordered direct from Compaq now . . . at prices equal to or below direct PC manufacturers.
And they come with leasing options . . . Internet services . . . customized services . . . and reseller support that our competitors cannot match.
All customers have to do is contact Compaq DirectPlus by telephone or over the Internet . . . choose the configurations they want . . . and place an order.
Through Compaq DirectPlus, the systems can be shipped as fast as the next business day . . . and, on average, within five business days.
* * * * *
Although this initiative is targeted at the SMB market . . . our customer choice model gives Compaq a competitive advantage in all segments of the market.
With customer choice, Compaq is creating a value proposition that is superior to anything that our competitors have to offer . . . a value proposition that is based on much more than just selling and shipping PCs direct.
Consider the conclusion reached not long ago in a report by Salomon Smith Barney.
The report said, "The ideal PC sales and fulfillment model is becoming clear, and it's not Dell's purely direct model. It is a hybrid of direct and indirect . . . incorporating the best features of the direct model with sales through whichever channel the customer prefers."
In other words, the best model is customer choice - and we are confident that it is the winning model - for Compaq and its customers.
* * * * *
Our initiative to expand Compaq's share of the SMB market is just one part of our overall enterprise strategy.
We are also sharply focused on meeting the needs of large and global companies for high-performance, inter-networked solutions.
With the acquisition of Tandem and Digital, we have dramatically expanded our ability to deliver enterprise solutions - from the desktop to the data center.
To begin with, we now have 10,000 sales and service professionals engaging with customers worldwide.
Our global and large account management teams provide "one face to the customer," representing all the products and services available from Compaq.
As a result, we can provide the program management, deployment and integration support that enterprise customers demand from their strategic IT partners.
* * * * *
When it comes to technology, Compaq is focused on leadership in the key areas that we believe will define the new world of inter-networked computing in the 21st Century - Windows NT . . . UNIX . . . 64-bit computing . . . storage . . . and the Internet.
Take Windows NT, for example.
More and more customers are choosing Windows NT as their enterprise operating system. So we are working with Microsoft to increase the availability and scaleability of Windows NT Server.
In September, Compaq and Microsoft announced a joint engineering initiative to give NT even greater enterprise capabilities.
Together, we will adapt key technologies such as clustering and systems management from Digital UNIX, OpenVMS and Tandem's NonStop Kernel . . . and incorporate them in future releases of NT.
As part of this agreement, Microsoft and Compaq will also make Digital UNIX even more interoperable with Windows NT.
We will add support for Microsoft COM - the Component Object Model - on Digital UNIX . . . Windows NT Security . . . and greater interoperability for transaction processing and data management services.
This is important because customers will continue to have mixed environments incorporating Windows NT, UNIX, OpenVMS, NSK, NetWare and other operatingsystems.
By delivering the best interoperability, we can help customers get the greatest value out of their existing IT investments.
* * * * *
I also want to take this opportunity to reinforce Compaq's commitment to 64-bit computing. And by that I mean not only Alpha but Intel's Merced chip.
Compaq has the most experience and the broadest range of 64-bit products, services and solutions in the industry.
According to recent benchmark tests, our newest Alpha microprocessor has a substantial performance lead over Sun, Hewlett-Packard and IBM.
By investing in Alpha design, we will maintain that advantage - and the performance benefits it delivers to customers - far into the future.
* * * * *
One area where the performance benefits of 64-bit computing are increasingly clear is in the high-end film and video industries -- particularly for animation and special effects.
The creation of the incredible images and effects in movies like Titanic and What Dreams May Come - both of which relied on Alpha systems - requires enormous processing power.
I'd like to show you two examples of the innovative work that animators and digital artists are doing with Compaq's Alpha systems.
The first one will appeal to the golfers in the audience who are always looking for the technological edge that will increase their distance and accuracy. It was produced by a company called Wreckless Abandon.
The second clip - from Blue Sky - represents the next generation of digital image rendering.
Look for the realistic lumination effects within the scene. This is extremely difficult to achieve.
video
The level of detail and realism in the second clip simply could not be achieved today on any platform other than Alpha.
Even on an Alpha system running at 1.2 billion instructions per second it took more than 14 hours to render each frame.
But here's where our continued investment in Alpha microprocessor design pays off.
Our newest Alpha chip has cut this time in half. And that makes it possible to achieve levels of detail and realism that were previously impossible.
* * * * *
But leadership technology is only one part of the value we deliver to customers.
What differentiates Compaq is our ability to take the best technologies from Compaq and its partners . . . and turn them into comprehensive solutions.
Our focus is not only on delivering the best solutions . . . but also on delivering the fastest time-to-solution. By that I mean that we are reducing the time it takes to plan, deploy and operate enterprise solutions.
To help customers implement solutions more quickly, we have introduced an innovative, Web-based knowledge center that we call activeAnswers.
It draws on the expertise of Compaq and its software partners to deliver the information, tools and methods needed to plan, deploy and operate enterprise solutions.
For example . . . as part of today's launch of Microsoft SQL Server 7, we are introducing the SQL Server activeAnswer zone.
It offers tools and enablers to help customers migrate to the new version of SQL Server from any existing version. And we will continue to add to that information in the coming months.
* * * * *
ActiveAnswers is a good example of how Compaq is using the Internet to meet the needs of our enterprise customers.
But we are not just focused on business.
In fact, Compaq is the world leader in consumer PCs, and we got there by bringing the latest Internet technology and the best Internet experience to consumers.
* * * * *
Earlier this year, Compaq pioneered the Internet PC with our unique Presario Internet keyboard, which provides easy access to a wide range of Internet services.
Today we are taking another bold step forward by introducing the world's first broadband, Internet home PC. It comes with an integrated 1.5 megabit digital modem, which provides Internet connections up to 25 times faster than current 56K modems.
The new Presario 5100c comes with the powerful 400 MHz AMD processor. And it is priced around $300 dollars less than the competition - whose systems do not even offer broadband-ready digital modems.
This product delivers leadership price and performance that we challenge any competitor to match.
Our new DSL modem is also available as an option on our award-winning Presario 5600 series - our ultimate Internet PC.
And we aren't stopping at great Internet PCs. We are also pioneering next generation display technology for the home. Today we introduced our new FP-700, 15" Digital Flat Panel Display, which delivers unsurpassed brightness and clarity - for a very good price.
* * * * *
Compaq is doing more than providing bright displays and fast modems. We're also working with leading cable and telecommunications companies to make ultra-fast Internet access available to everyone.
Today we are announcing a "triple play" broadband Internet access program that expands on our industry leadership.
We call it "triple play" because it spans three high-speed communications technologies - cable . . . DSL . . . and satellite.
It is the most comprehensive partnership strategy to provide U.S. consumers with the widest choice of high-speed connections to the Internet.
* * * * *
Compaq's long-term goal is very simple: to be the preferred brand in the networked digital home.
What we envision is a home with two advanced digital gateways - a data gateway represented by the PC . . . and optimized for the next generation of Internet content . . .
and a video gateway optimized for the next wave of entertainment.
The availability of broadband access and seamless home-networking will drive the development of new Internet devices . . . designed for a wide variety of uses . . . in different places throughout the home.
These devices will feed this new digital content to all rooms in the home - making on-demand information . . . commerce . . . and entertainment a way of life.
Using your home network and the Internet will be as easy as using your telephone today.
* * * * *
Before I conclude, I want to show you some technology that has the potential to make the New World of Computing more personal.
It is called FaceWorks . . . and it is the product of some of the very innovative work going on in the Compaq labs.
Put simply, FaceWorks is software that automates the process of creating animated talking heads. This technology is based on real speech and real-time graphics. It will run on your PC . . . and you don't have to be a graphics expert to use it.
Instead of explaining it myself, I'm going to let my "cyber face" do the talking.
FACE: Thank you, Eckhard.
I'll be brief.
ECKHARD: At least one of us should be.
FACE: That's great. Suddenly you've developed a sense of humor.
As I was saying . . .
What FaceWorks allows you to do is to convert a 2 dimensional image into a 3-D talking face.
When played back, the face synchronizes to real speech . . . as you can see.
By bringing faces and personalities to the desktop, FaceWorks will change what is now a rather static web environment.
Imagine the power of talking faces in providing product and service information . . . news updates . . . on-line entertainment . . . and education and training.
It could also provide a more personalized approach to e-mail.
As we perfect this technology, I believe it will become difficult to tell the difference between a real face and a synthetic one.
* * * * *
One more thing, Eckhard.
I have a pretty good view of the audience from up here . . . and it looks like they're getting hungry.
[Back to Eckhard]
* * * * *
What I hope this demonstration communicates is that the New World of Computing will be one that has a sense of humor.
If we expect to bring more people to the Internet and to computing in general, we need to soften the hard edges of the technology we develop.
At Compaq, we take information technology very seriously . . . but we try not to take ourselves too seriously.
After all, information technology is not an end in itself.
It is a tool - a tool that can be used not only to make business more competitive . . . but to enrich people's lives.
Our objective is to help customers get the most out of computing . . .
from the family that is buying its first PC and venturing out on the Internet for the first time . . .
to the small business that is establishing a storefront on the web . . .
to the company that is building a global inter-networked enterprise.
Together we are building a New World of Computing. |
