PC makers plan to prop up market revival

Writankar Mukherjee, Kolkata
The Economic Times (Kolkata edition)
With computer sales in India expected to revive in the second half of 2009, PC makers and chip manufacturers alike are planning to provide a thrust to their game plan in the country.

While Intel and AMD are adopting multiple initiatives to target the first-time users and lower PC prices in the market, PC vendors like Dell and Acer are looking at ways to grow the market by tapping the huge potential in government projects and growing consumer sentiments.

For starters, AMD has just rolled out a new entry-level processor in India priced at $35. “With this, we have reduced the entry-level processor prices by nearly $5. This is part of our strategy to do whatever we can to grow the market. We also plan to grow our retail distribution network,” AMD India VP (marketing and sales) Ramkumar Subramanian said.

According to AMD India, PC sales slid by nearly 10-15% in the first half of 2009. Arch rival Intel feels PC sales have bottomed out during the first half in India and the industry can now expect a sizeable recovery. Both the chip makers are working with OEM and trade partners to grow adoption of their latest platforms in this subdued market.

“While 2009 started with a lull in government purchases, there is now a healthy ICT tender pipeline. Enquires from the enterprise segment are also rising as they want to refresh their PC infrastructure to control costs. After all, the latest range of PCs significantly cut down power and operating costs,” Intel South Asia director (marketing) Prakash Bagri said.

Intel expects newer form factors like ultra-slim notebooks will drive PC sales in the top-end of the market. The chip giant is also betting on its Atom processors to drive growth in value computing through netbooks and nettops. “With Atom, we expect to create a range of devices for the first time users in India. We are also packing more features like WiMAX capabilities to increase its performance,” said Bagri.

PC vendor Acer is refreshing its product line big time in India. “We plan to undertake a lot of ground level activity in the second half with the festivity season round the corner. The netbook is also gaining acceptance in India as the sub-Rs 20,000 price point is becoming a big draw,” said Acer India chief marketing officer S. Rajendran.

Dell India country general manager Sameer Garde said the company is also expanding its product portfolio and distribution channel to grow the business in second half. Hewlett-Packard (HP) is tapping the rural turf to drive growth in line with increasing broadband penetration.