PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y, May 18, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The U.S. B2B Tech Reseller channel saw sales in the healthcare(1) sector hit $908 million during the first quarter of the year, according to The NPD Group's U.S. B2B Reseller Tracking service(2). While revenues remained relatively stable when compared to the same period last year, certain categories saw strong growth, due in part to the spread of the novel coronavirus during Q1'20.
Inclusive of January, February and March 2020, when the first cases of COVID-19 are believed to have been confirmed in the U.S., the sales data indicates notable increases in several key categories impacted by the spread of the pandemic, including PCs, tablets, IT infrastructure/networking, and security software.
"Given the surge in demand for healthcare services and the number of patients requiring care, doctors, nurses, and healthcare facilities are placing a stronger reliance on technology to manage and address the need," stated Kate Roe-Semyon, President, B2B Technology Practice, The NPD Group. "We're seeing this rise as more providers move toward telemedicine and as more patients in isolation rely upon technology to connect with others."
Leading sales in the channel's healthcare segment were PCs, inclusive of notebook computers, desktop computers and monitors(3). In combination, PCs accounted for $261 million of the total Q1 B2B Tech spend among healthcare resellers. Tablets, which saw an 87.5% lift in revenue year-over-year, accounted for $28 million alone. The gateway and firewall category accounted for $22 million, while switches accounted for $30 million, indicating the importance those in the healthcare industry are placing on secure networks.
"With added usage during the pandemic, networks become strained and users are more vulnerable to security risks, such as hacked patient records," said Mike Crosby, NPD Director and B2B Technology Industry Analyst. "Wisely, as the number of devices funneling into the healthcare segment increased, hospital administrators and providers had the foresight to shore up the security of their networks and infrastructure."
(1) The NPD Group considers a variety of industry players in the overall healthcare segment of the B2B Reseller channel, including hospitals, general physician offices, medical and diagnostic laboratories, ambulatory healthcare centers, home healthcare services, skilled nursing facilities, vocational rehabilitation services, and other specialty healthcare providers.
(2) Mar. '20 vs. YAG
(3) Preconfigured and BTO
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About The NPD Group, Inc.
NPD offers data, industry expertise, and prescriptive analytics to help our clients grow their businesses in a changing world. Over 2000 companies worldwide rely on us to help them measure, predict, and improve performance across all channels, including brick-and-mortar and e-commerce. We have offices in 27 cities worldwide, with operations spanning the Americas, Europe, and APAC. Practice areas include apparel, appliances, automotive, beauty, books, B2B technology, consumer technology, e-commerce, fashion accessories, food consumption, foodservice, footwear, home, juvenile products, media entertainment, mobile, office supplies, retail, sports, toys, travel retail, video games, and watches / jewelry. For more information, visit npd.com. Follow us on Twitter: @npdgroup.
SOURCE The NPD Group
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