Hewlett-Packard launches package for smaller firms

Hoping to capitalize on the growing demand for information technology services among small and medium-sized businesses (SMB), Hewlett-Packard Co yesterday launched its "Smart Office" initiative in Taiwan.

"I believe our service can fulfill the different needs of companies through the integration of our complete product line and the advanced service network provided by our distributors in the nation," Jason Juang (莊正松), vice president and general manager of HP Taiwan's personal system group, said at a launching ceremony.

Through this initiative, HP will provide access to the right expertise, which will lead to the smart technology decisions that simplify the whole process of buying, using and owning HP products and solutions, said Clarence Cho (曹明耀), HP's director of SMB Marketing in Asia Pacific and Japan.

Charges for the packages, including hardware and technique consultation and support services, range from NT$30,000 to more than NT$170,000 depending on the demand for equipment and services that companies require, Cho said. To strengthen its solution services, HP worked with 500 distributors, he said.

Small and medium-sized companies usually have small IT budgets compared to large enterprises, but the market is full of potential, as Taiwan has 1.1 million such businesses, accounting for 98.18 percent of all enterprises in the nation, said Steven Hu (胡世衛), HP's senior manager of the Channel and SMB Business Division.

Citing statistics from the international research agency IDC, Hu said small and medium-sized businesses in the Asia-Pacific region will spend US$91 billion on their IT systems this year, climbing to US$141 billion in 2006.

However, according to a poll released by the Chinese-language TechVantage Magazine (e天下雜誌) last month, nearly 70 percent of small and medium-sized firms spent less than NT$1 million on IT infrastructure and maintenance this year, while 65 percent of those polled said they will keep such spending below NT$1 million next year. The survey also found that most companies were reluctant to invest more in IT because of a shortage of resources and specialists.

The survey is good news for HP, as companies are realizing that they can solve their IT problems through purchasing the package, or even outsourcing their IT division to the company, Cho said.

Rival IBM Corp said although the company provides some IT equipment, namely desktop computers and notebook computers, its full-blown services still make the company the largest IT service vendor in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as in Taiwan, said Emma Chung (鍾淑娟), a public relations official at IBM Taiwan.

According to a report released by IDC last week, IBM is the No. 1 vendor in the region excluding Japan. For the first six months of this year, its total revenue in the region was US$1.08 billion, up 10.3 percent from the second half of last year, the report said. HP was second with US$678 million, 6.5 percent more than last year, the report said.