Regional demand for PCs in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is currently rising at an annual rate of 16-17 percent, and is expected to constitute the chief factor in boosting computer sales across the Middle East and North Africa in the next few years.
According to Dirk De Waegnerie, vice-president for international sales at Fujitsu-Siemens, sales to SMEs are expanding rapidly and will compensate for the slower growth in government and corporate purchases, which average 6-7 percent per year. He added that SME sales presently comprise between 15-20 percent of aggregate PC sales in the region and he expects this figure to rise in the future.
The Gulf News reported that many Emirate and Middle East businesses still use Intel-based 386 and 486 machines, which are incompatible with much of the software that facilitates electronic commerce operations. There could therefore be a huge replacement market developing, and leading computer manufacturers have been aggressively pursuing such opportunities in the past few months.
Fujistu-Siemens hopes to capture a 6-7 percent market share in the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar and Oman by the end of next year. Recently, it established a representative office in Dubai to service these markets, which together account for roughly 250,000 PC units. The Khaleej Times revealed that the company aspires to add two enterprise partners apart from three to four corporate partners, and between 10 and 15 business partners catering to SMEs.
Fujitsu-Siemens is targeting sales of 12,000 units in Saudi Arabia, and roughly 10,000 each in the UAE and Egypt next year. It hopes to expand its business by 25 percent, versus and industry average of 16-17 percent. Fujitsu-Siemens recently appointed Dubai’s ITL Cosmos as a partner for its consumer line. — (Albawaba-MEBG)
