Consumerization of IT
T
he past year proved to be ‘the year of social networking’ that saw people across diverse demographics flocking to social networking Websites to voice their opinions. Consumerization of IT took root, with the launch of new gadgets in the tablet, ultraportable and smartphone categories. As a result, India’s avid Internet user base has grown to over 100 million by 2011, an impressive YOY growth of over 13 percent. 2011 witnessed the introduction of an exciting new category namely ultraportable PCs that offer sleek and powerful design along with high battery life, bundled in a single device. 2012 will see devices that are able to integrate content creation and consumption, entertainment and gaming, among others. Portability, ease-of-use, convenience and mobility will be the propellers of change. Technology is a dynamic business to be in as it never ceases to evolve. 2012 will be yet another year of surprises. Despite the overall economic challenges, enterprises will continue to invest in IT, as technology helps them streamline processes and optimize resource utilization. For 2012, the IT spending in India is projected to be $79.8 billion, a 9.1 percent increase from 2011’s spending of $73.1 billion, according to Gartner. The consumer notebook market will grow significantly as government moves in with policy measures to bridge the digital divide. We have already seen two such initiatives—the tender from the Tamil Nadu government to buy 900,000 mobile computers, and Aakash tablet launched by the Ministry of ICT for the education sector. The tablet and ultrabook market will also see growth in the days
ahead, with consumer tastes veering toward more elegant design and compact sizes.
Growth amidst challenges The coming year will see a greater move to the cloud as consumers increasingly demand content that is not directly hosted on their PCs. Workplaces will see a growing number of personal and professional devices, and a convergence between the two might be inevitable. The need to be mobile and social will take precedence as the number of Internet users will continue to grow at an explosive rate. Tablets may well become the next growth engine for PC OEMs like Lenovo. Meanwhile, the depreciation of the Indian currency could create some challenges for the PC and IT companies as they grapple to avoid increase in prices of their products to the end-users.
Channel priorities As indicated by various Gartner and IDC reports, PC shipments will continue to increase in 2012, with tier-2 and tier-3 cities leading the PC demand. With cloud computing expected to grow at a phenomenal rate, there will be a marked shift among end-users to mobile and powerful computing devices such as tablets and smart phones. 2011 saw the channel contract, with several small box pushers exiting the market. With the transition to cloud-based devices, continuous globalization of retail and supply chains of large vendors,
2012 would see further consolidation of the IT channel because of the transition to cloud-based devices and globalization of retail and supply chains
Amar Babu
Managing Director, Lenovo India
and the consumerization of IT, 2012 could see further consolidation in the IT channel, particularly among the tiers that play a low value-add role in the chain. Most PC vendors will continue to invest, albeit cautiously, in retail and marketing activities, and also target newer consumption models, for example, social networking and smaller format stores in small cities. While the entry of the large format stores has changed some of the rules for IT retailers in large cities, by and large, this has also made them more structured. In the days ahead, all types of retail, and various types of corporate reseller models will co-exist.
Road ahead On the whole, as individuals become more connected, content will be increasingly consumed onthe-go; social networks will become all-pervasive; and the boundaries between work and play will blur further. Channel community will need to re-evaluate their go-to-market, and PC vendors, on their part, will need to provide them the right guidance and tools to transform. n
Computer Reseller News
15/01/2012
www.crn.in
25