Seagate ST98823A Whitebooks: An Imperative Opportunity (187K, PDF) - Page 1

Technology Paper Whitebooks: An Imperative Opportunity Move Toward Mobility The market for notebook computers is growing rapidly as consumers embrace mobile computing and improved technology facilitates desktop replacement. Gartner predicts worldwide sales for the notebook and desktop computer markets will near parity by 20101, with notebook sales comprising 46 percent of the overall PC market. Seagate Technology® and other major hardware vendors believe now is the time for system builders to take advantage of the fast-growing whitebook market, and they are working together to create an ecosystem that will give system builders a competitive edge. Whitebooks are customizable private-label notebook computers that offer the highest margins to system builders, just as whiteboxes-high-end, customizable PCs-did in the early 1990s. Given the right solutions, system builders can successfully penetrate select markets with mobile offerings that meet specific needs, paired with the trusted support only local resellers can provide. Today whitebook sales are growing faster than the whitebox market and are forecasted to reach 3.75 million worldwide shipments in 20072-representing year-over-year growth of approximately 20 percent (see Figure 1). Worldwide Whitebook Opportunity by Region 4,000 3,500 3,000 2,500 2,000 1,500 1,000 500 0 EMEA APAC AMER CY 2005 EMEA APAC AMER CY 2006 EMEA APAC AMER CY 2007 Figure 1. Worldwide whitebook opportunity by region, from Seagate Marketing, August 2006. 1Gartner Worldwide PC Forecast, June 2006 2Seagate Marketing, August 2006