IT market grows 11% in first half of 2007, led by consumers

Compared with the first half of 2006, it finds the market up 11%, mainly due to sales of smart phones, storage solutions, mini-speakers and mobile PCs. In the first six months of 2007 storage drives hit £240 million in the business and consumer markets, while mini speakers were worth £50 million. Mobile PCs, says GfK, account for more than £1,3 billion for the period. Anthony Norman, GfK’s IT Barometer business group director, says that the backbone of the market remains demand for PCs. “Currently, the notebook market is growing, especially on the consumer side,” he says. “68% of all notebooks were demanded by the consumer, up 5% compared to last year.” He also comments that despite debate around Vista, there are clear signs that the new operating system has had a positive impact on the market – with 82% of all retail sales being Vista or Vista compatible notebooks. Norman also suggests that because of higher technology requirements, the average selling price increased by 12% at the beginning of the year. Processing power also increased: GfK finds that in retail, 60% of all consumer notebooks are running at least on a two-core CPU generation. However, on the business side, despite a lower penetration of Vista (with just 20% adoption), he insists that uptake will increase. “Businesses are thinking long-term. The impact and economies are completely different. It just takes longer until companies migrate their operating systems.” And he adds: “We have seen an exciting year so far, which was very consumer-orientated. Microsoft’s Vista launch and technology updates from Intel and AMD have helped to drive the market. In the second half there will be further events, like the launch of Apple’s iPhone and increasing use of mobile web, which will impact the market.”