ASCII Group - Competitors

ASCII Group Competition

Now Viewing ASCII Group's competition in: Computer and Office Equipment Distributors (primary)

Recent Developments

Spending Forecast Good News for International Business - IT spending is an indication of demand for computer and office equipment distributors, but recent research indicates that businesses will be spending less for IT products in 2008 than previously forecast. IT spending will increase robustly in some parts of the world in 2008, but research firm Gartner downgraded its estimate of IT spending growth in the US to 2.3 percent in 2008 compared to 2007; 3.1 percent growth had been predicted. However, distributors with an international component to their business will likely benefit from worldwide growth.

Customers Push for Environmental Friendliness - Businesses and consumers increasingly want energy-efficient and environmentally friendly computers and IT equipment. Forrester Research indicates that 45 percent of businesses plan to buy more environmentally friendly IT products, such as computers. And computer manufacturers such as Dell plan to increase the energy efficiency of their laptops and desktops over the next several years, in response to consumer demand.

Apple Sales Drive Computer, Software Increases - Computer and office equipment distributors are seeing increased demand for Apple products and related software, due to rising consumer demand for Mac computers. Mac sales increased 51 percent in first quarter 2008 compared to one year earlier. The effect for distributors is two-fold: Mac sales are up and driving an increase in Microsoft Office 2008 software sales, which Microsoft says are up significantly for Mac computers thus far in 2008.

Competitive Landscape

Demand is strongly affected by the level of business activity. The profitability of individual companies depends on merchandising and efficient operations. Large companies have economies of scale in purchasing. Smaller companies can compete effectively by offering specialty products or superior service. The industry is highly automated: annual revenue per employee is about $600,000.

Full Industry Overview For Computer and Office Equipment Distributors

Computer and Office Equipment Distributors Industry Forecast

from Hoover's/D&B subsidiary First Research

Domestic demand for US computer and office equipment manufacturing, an indicator for wholesalers, is forecast to grow at an annual compounded rate of 4 percent between 2007 and 2012.

Computer and Office Equipment Demand Growth Spikes then Stabilizes

First Research forecasts are based on INFORUM forecasts that are licensed from the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc. (IERF) in College Park, MD. INFORUM's "interindustry-macro" approach to modeling the economy captures the links between industries and the aggregate economy.