The Hindu : Business : Notebooks drive personal computer sales

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Wednesday, Jul 09, 2008
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Business

Notebooks drive personal computer sales

Special Correspondent

Server sales up 35 % at 1.22 lakh units

— PHOTO: KAMAL NARANG

HOUSEHOLD CHIPS IN: Mukul Singhal (right), President, with Vinnie Mehta, Executive Director, MAIT, addressing a press conference in New Delhi on Tuesday.

NEW DELHI: Record consumption of notebooks helped overall personal computer (PC) sales register a 16 per cent growth in 2007-08 to touch 73.4 lakh units. This also led to an impressive 114 per cent growth in information technology (IT) consumption, said the Manufacturers Association for Information Technology (MAIT) here on Tuesday.

Releasing the industry performance review, MAIT Executive Director Vinnie Mehta said: “Notebook consumption has driven the PC market in India in 2007-08. With sales crossing 10 lakh units in the second-half of last fiscal, total sales of notebooks in 2007-08 surpassed 18 lakh units growing 114 per cent over the last year. Today, notebooks account for a quarter of the total PC market, up from less than 3 per cent four years ago. With shifting consumer-preference in favour of notebooks over the desktop, this proportion will only get larger with time.”

Stating that western and southern India recorded the maximum growth in PC consumption at 39 per cent each, Mr. Mehta said PC sales were projected to touch 85 lakh units in 2008-09, thanks to the increased demand for notebooks. In 2007-08, desktop PC sales touched 55.22 lakh units, registering a marginal growth, while server sales also grew by 35 per cent to touch 1.22 lakh units. “Consumption of notebooks is being driven by affordability, mobility, sleek designs, enhanced security features and other in-built accessories,” he added. Although sales to the large enterprises were less than expected, the overall consumption in the PC market was led by telecom, banking and financial service sectors, education and BPO/IT-enabled services, and the e-governance initiatives of the Union and the State governments,” he pointed out.

About Internet usage, Mr. Mehta said the number of active Internet entities (including individual and business users) increased to 72 lakh subscriptions by March 2008, while in March 2007 it was 60 lakh. Internet penetration by entities in the top 22 cities was 46 per cent among businesses and 21 per cent among households, he added.

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