14 DAY TRIAL // Similarly to how the Atom processor has been helping Intel maintain its profits steady in the context of a slow worldwide economy, the small-size ultraportable Eee PC is making its contribution to Taiwanese manufacturer ASUSTek generating a record revenue, despite signs of slowing global growth. The news comes from a company's representative, and confirms the general belief on the market as to how ASUS is a leading vendor of netbooks.
The company's Chief Executive Jerry Shen said that ASUS was expecting revenue to grow 26 percent to $843.3 million in September, while October and November were estimated to generate even higher revenues. Much of the company's success is due to its budget Eee PC netbooks, which are priced from $300 to $1,000, according to Shen. “The sales of computers, as daily necessity goods, are only slightly affected during a financially turbulent period,” he said in an interview with The Associated Press.
ASUS' successful Eee PC lineup has encouraged other systems vendors, such as Acer, MSI, Lenovo, Dell or Toshiba, to also release their own ultra-portable, Atom-powered computer systems, thus setting the stage for a more competitive market. Because of these new netbooks and given that ASUS' stock has dropped about 18 percent over the past month, the company's CEO remains rather pessimistic in his market predictions. “The worst I am expecting is that next year's profit growth might be cut in half if our competitors start to offer ludicrously low prices to attract consumers in a sluggish economy,” he said.
Since its launch back in 2007, the Eee PC has recorded shipments of about 4 million units, according to company officials. Considering that we’re talking here about one of the most successful netbooks on the market, it’s understandable that the company's expectations also be rather high, as it hopes to ship at least 5 million units of its Eee PC systems by the end of this year alone. And, with ASUS expected to release yet more models, like the high-end S101, the 5 million target doesn't seem way off from the reality on the market.