Acer to Expand Android and Chromebook Offering at The Expense of Windows
When you're a major PC manufacturer, you really have to follow the whims of the consumer. Whatever's hot at the moment drives the supply chain, and it also drives the product mix. In Acer's case, it looks as if the company has decided that Android and Chrome are a bit warmer than Windows at the moment, and it's tough to blame them. Windows 8 sales, while impressive due to longstanding contracts that re-up Windows builds on an interval basis, haven't been mind-blowing. Particularly on the mobile and tablet front, Win8 has yet to make a huge dent in the iPad share.
Now, a Wall Street Journal report suggests that Acer will expand its Android and Chromebook offerings at the expense of Windows products, citing slowing demand for the latter. The news comes on the heels of a poor Q2, where the company saw a loss based on sagging sales and rising expenses. President Jim Wang said the following to investors: "We are trying to grow our non-Windows business as soon as possible. Android is very popular in smartphones and dominant in tablets…I also see a new market there for Chromebooks."
He's anticipating that Chromebooks as well as Android-based smartphones and tablets will make up around 11% of Acer's revenue by the year's end, and could grow to as much as 30% by 2014. That's a big chunk of the Windows share being passed on to Google, and it leaves open a huge question: is every other PC maker considering a similar strategy?
Now, a Wall Street Journal report suggests that Acer will expand its Android and Chromebook offerings at the expense of Windows products, citing slowing demand for the latter. The news comes on the heels of a poor Q2, where the company saw a loss based on sagging sales and rising expenses. President Jim Wang said the following to investors: "We are trying to grow our non-Windows business as soon as possible. Android is very popular in smartphones and dominant in tablets…I also see a new market there for Chromebooks."
He's anticipating that Chromebooks as well as Android-based smartphones and tablets will make up around 11% of Acer's revenue by the year's end, and could grow to as much as 30% by 2014. That's a big chunk of the Windows share being passed on to Google, and it leaves open a huge question: is every other PC maker considering a similar strategy?
