PCR Tech and IT retail, distribution and vendor news
We roundup the latest news from IT analysts and firms to see which tech categories have been doing well, which haven’t, what’s forecast to be big in the near future, and what the latest trends are.
GLOBAL TABLET SHIPMENTS FELL 35% IN Q1
TrendForce has reported worldwide tablet shipments in the first quarter of 2016 totaled 35.2 million units, translating to a 35 per cent drop from the previous quarter and a 7.9 per cent drop from a year ago.
TrendForce notebook analyst Anita Wang said branded tablet vendors’ shipment results were mediocre following their impressive fourth-quarter performances that were supported by the peak season demand.
As large-size smartphones continue to erode the tablet market, the trend of tablets becoming even larger has become more apparent. TrendForce’s data shows the 7.x-inch tablets accounted for less than 40 per cent of the total tablet shipments in the first quarter.
SMARTPHONE MARKET CONTRACTS BY 6% IN Q1
Juniper Research has estimated that the number of smartphone shipments reached 320 million in Q1 2016, representing a year-on-year decline of nearly 6 per cent.
Apple has reported its first ever year-on-year decline of 16.3 per cent, Lumia sales declined sharply to less than 3 million units, meanwhile, Samsung continued to stabilise revenue, with a slight increase in unit sales.
As the market as a whole slows, smartphone vendors need to adjust to targeting the replacement market. Large growth in other areas, such as Africa, is unlikely unless there is a dramatic reduction in the ASP (average selling price) of lower-end smartphones, meaning that the market decline will to continue throughout the year.
HYPERCONVERGED INTEGRATED SYSTEMS WILL BE MAINSTREAM IN 5 YEARS
Gartner has reported that the market for hyperconverged integrated systems (HCIS) will grow 79 per cent to reach almost $2 billion in 2016, propelling it toward mainstream use in the next five years.
HCIS will be the fastest-growing segment of the overall market for integrated systems, reaching almost $5 billion, representing 24 per cent of the market by 2019. Gartner said that although the overall integrated systems market is growing, other segments of the market will face cannibalisation from hyperconverged systems.
WORLDWIDE ENTERPRISE SECURITY SOFTWARE MARKET TO GROW TO $3.21 BILLION IN 2020
According to new IDC research, the worldwide enterprise security software market will grow from $1.76 billion in 2015 to $3.21 billion in 2020, representing a CAGR of 12.7 per cent.
"Mobility and BYOD, in particular, are core initiatives for enterprises moving to the 3rd Platform," said Phil Hochmuth, program director, Enterprise Mobility at IDC.
"However, enterprise mobility technology deployed without security will do more harm than good regarding an organisation’s 3rd Platform aspirations. To that end, any enterprise mobility initiative must start with a mobile security technology plan."
OVERALL SHOP PRICES REPORTED DEFLATION OF 1.7% IN APRIL
Overall shop prices reported deflation of 1.7% in April, unchanged from the decline seen in March, according to British Retail Consortium.
“This month marks an important anniversary for retailers and shoppers alike. We’ve seen three years of falling shop prices, with prices falling by 1.7% in April compared to a year earlier. The thirty-six consecutive months of price falls is being driven by intense competition across the industry,” said Helen Dickinson OBE, Chief Executive, British Retail Consortium.
“It has knock on implications for margins and profitability given the combination of continued investment in digital and rising cost pressures, compounded by recent policy announcements. Ensuring they do not pass on these cost increases, alongside the intensity of competition in the market, are the principal reasons why retailers continue to respond to their customers’ demands for value. As this month’s figures show, this has helped shoppers and kept inflation (and therefore interest rates) low to betterment of the UK economy.”
