14 DAY TRIAL // As Dell strives to get that troublesome private deal closed, it has to cut corners and make the best of the sources of revenue it still has, something that apparently isn't going very well if a certain report is true.
According to Digitimes, the company has begun demanding price cuts from upstream component suppliers, especially metal chassis suppliers.
Dell is actually looking to stock up on those things, unlike others who don't feel too bad about using plastic cases more often than not.
In any case, Dell is asking Catcher Technology and Fuyu Precision Component, a subsidiary of the Foxconn Group, to drop their prices.
Given the signs, there is also a high probability of calling on the services of Compal Precision Module at some point in the near future.
Compal Precision Module is a joint venture between Compal Electronics and Ju Teng. By making it a strong supplier, Dell would be placing pressure on its two existing partners, thus giving them an extra reason to acquiesce to its request for discounts.
Since the success of its politicking will determined how cheap new notebooks will be, we suppose people should be rooting for Dell in this instance.
Success or failure will have to be achieved by the end of the month though (March 2013), as Dell's chassis orders are expected to be rearranged in April, which doesn't provide the corporation with a very large window of opportunity.
Prices being too high or too low is a debate that frequently arises on different layers of the IT industry and the worldwide economy as a whole.
Most recently, for example, DRAM suppliers have been accused of artificially fixing prices. Not that it actually led to anything what with prices set to grow despite all that. At least Dell isn't likely to get any more aggressive in its demands.