THT Research: Taiwan Notebook Makers'Market Share to Rise Again in 2005

THT Research (THT), a leading research firm for information technology contract manufacturing, today announced estimated 2005 market shares for the world's leading notebook computer manufacturers.

Chicago, IL (PRWEB) February 15, 2005 --THT Research (THT), a leading research firm for information technology contract manufacturing, today announced estimated 2005 market shares for the world's leading notebook computer manufacturers. Detailed shipment data on notebook computer's and other IT products are available in THT's Contract Manufacturing Database. THT's Database, available at www.thtresearch.com, provides in-depth data on companies and sectors in global IT contract manufacturing, including shipment data and forecasts, profiles of OEM/ODM customers and providers, and mergers and acquisitions.

THT Research estimates that Taiwan notebook computer makers will continue to dominate the 2005 global contract manufacturing industry, with the top five Taiwan players making over 65% of the world's notebook computers. The global notebook computer industry continues to grow at a rate of over 20% annually and Taiwan's share of that market is growing faster then the global market. In 2005, Taiwan's percentage of notebook computer shipments is expected to reach 73.7%.

THT estimates that the top producing Taiwan notebook makers, in terms of global market share for 2005 will be: Quanta Computer (25.92%), Compal (17.4%), Asustek (8.51%), Inventec (7.59%), and Wistron (7.59%). The wild card in the industry is Foxconn Electronics (Hon Hai Precision Industry), which entered the notebook computer business in 2004 and is expected to emerge as a major player over the next couple of years.

"With their prevailing strategy of contract manufacturing notebook computers for name brand companies, also called OEM or ODM, Taiwan notebook makers compete over global market share, not end-user sales," explained THT analyst Ruth Cohen. "They do it so successfully because of their time-tested strategy of increasing production, while accepting increasingly lower margins - usually below 6% for notebooks.

"Migration of production to China is an important component of this strategy," Cohen continues. "Not only does it save production costs, but the manufacturers' OEM customers, such as Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Gateway demand it. By cooperating, Taiwan's notebook makers secure these relationships and open up the potential for expanding sales to LCD TVs and other consumer IT products."

As for the future of Taiwan's notebook makers, Cohen is optimistic: "Unlike Taiwan's digital camera industry (DSC), which is suffering from migration of OEM orders to Japan and China, Taiwan's notebook computer makers remain the kings of the industry. Lenovo of China's acquisition of IBM's PC unit is not expected to change that. On the contrary, it will likely lead to increased orders for the Taiwan contract manufacturers already shipping to Lenovo."

About THT Research
THT Research (formerly TaiwanHighTech.com) is a leading provider of research and information on global information technology contract manufacturing. Managers throughout the IT world rely on THT's Contract Manufacturing Database to provide the answers they need for their business decisions. Covering over 12,000 companies, the database is updated weekly and fully searchable. Full, ongoing access to THT's database may be purchased, as well as access to company or sector-specific segments. In addition, with research teams in Asia and the US, THT is adept at providing custom research on companies, sectors, and markets quickly and confidentially. Visit www.thtresearch.com and sign up for THT's free weekly e-newsletter to get the latest contract manufacturing news to your desktop.

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