计算机运算市场持续进展，戴尔公司(Dell)的业务却越走下坡。该公司并未在平板电脑或智能手机市场上推出任何令人印象深刻的产品组合，但这却是目前市场需求最蓬勃发展之处──不再是Dell曾经占主导地位的消费或企业计算机领域。
但这并不仅仅发生在Dell公司。许多还未能在此小型运算设备新世界找到立足点的其它PC制造商们也面临着类似的问题──如何在这个风靡平板电脑与智能手机以及由苹果公司(Apple)和三星电子(Samsung Electronics)主导的市场中保有产品的相关性。除了这两大对手以外，在平板电脑与智能手机市场上的其它竞争厂商们也紧紧守着一点微薄的市占率，助长了市场出现一些观察与预测：为了避免亏损，一些厂商不得不退出这一领域。
但这并不是指Dell正处于亏损状态。该公司有太多具有竞争力的产品之所以出现赤字只是因为消费者和企业买家的PC需求下滑。从今年五月结算的2013财年第一季营收来看，Dell的净利为6.35亿美元，较去年同期的9.45亿美元衰退了三成。本季销售业绩144亿美元，较2012财年第一季的150亿美元下滑了4%，也较上一季下滑10%。投资人与Dell管理阶层对于营收衰退都相当震惊，该公司管理阶层认为这是由于销售执行力度不佳、全球经济环境疲软，以及平板电脑与智能手机等产品竞争压力所致。
Dell公司首席财务官Brian Gladden在与分析师的电话会议上进一步解释：
“几项重大的关键因素导致了公司的营收赤字。我们的销售执行力并未达到原先的期望，而在迈向第二季之际，我们已经为此加强改善了。此外，需求环境比我们计划的更严苛，除了大众市场以外，我要特别强调的是在欧洲、中东与非洲(EMEA)以及亚洲部份地区的市场需求不振。”
“最后，我们的部份业务经历了一个更具挑战性的竞争环境。由于外在的竞争环境越来越险峻，特别是在入门级市场与新兴市场，这使得我们的笔记本计算机业务萎缩了 10%。我们认为外在竞争环境越来越严苛可能是因为过去两季以来的硬盘短缺问题使渠道库存重整所致。另外，我们还看到越来越多消费者将IT花费转移到另一种新型的移动运算设备了。这些种种的市场动态因素对我们的季营收和获利造成了冲击。”
本文下一页： PC将进入第N次价格大战
本文授权编译自EBN Online，版权所有，谢绝转载
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• Q1笔记本电脑出货强劲，全年可能突破2.36亿台规模
• 电子产品换代频繁，售后与回收市场升温
• “白菜价”电脑将为教育事业作出贡献 8DBesmc
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随着平板电脑和智能手机销售成长，侵蚀着对于个人计算机的需求，无法在热销产品领域占稳位置的制造商们只得展开无情的PC价格厮杀战，来争取一点市占率。Galdden说Dell公司十分担心 这种“激烈的价格竞争环境将带来冲击”，但该公司也没有够足强大的市场地位能禁得起这一波攻势。因为Dell并没有吸引人的平板电脑或智能手机产品，能与苹果 iPad / iPhone 或三星 Galaxy 相抗衡。为了保持其市占率，Dell可能还得再次投入低阶PC市场，这个市场可是Dell先前为了避免利润下滑压力而避之危恐不及的领域啊！
如果Dell和同样处境的对手们还在期待企业IT支出能缓解部份压力，他们应该只会见识到更大的打击吧！虽然针对企业IT的要求通常不同于对消费电子产品市场，但如今二者的界线开始慢慢地模糊了。企业用户正将更多的功能需求转移至平板电脑，因而大多都忽略了台式电脑。尽管对于笔记本计算机的市场的需求预计还将持续一段时间，但许多公司已开始寻求员工用平板电脑的功能性，特别是讲究移动性、易用性和图形等功能的销售业务。
Dell 公司管理团队坚信还不必太过于担心企业PC 市场销售业务受侵蚀的问题。但我个人认为他们应该开始担心了。虽然平板电脑并不会完全取代部份用户的笔记本计算机，但却已经开始被用来作为辅助设备了，让一些企业能够减少在IT设备方面的花费。Dell公司总裁兼商务长Stephen Felice说：
“台式和笔记本电脑的消费支出持续历经市场压力，同时，在消费市场的许多成长已经转移到新兴市场的入门级产品了，而这是一个我们先前不打算投入的领域。我们也看到一些IT预算优先用于采购其它移动设备了。现在这是一个大多由消费者带动的市场动态，但明显地也为商业等领域带来了冲击。”
Dell显然不会放弃PC市场，因为该公司正加紧努力，并且在快速成长的平板电脑市场中扩展其产品组合。同样地，并不是只有Dell一家公司面临这个问题，而且，就像PC市场曾经历过的情况，平板电脑市场也变得越来越拥挤了。这又是一大问题。
编译：Susan Hong
本文授权编译自EBN Online，版权所有，谢绝转载
下一页，参考英文原文：Dell Struggles in Post-PC World，by Bolaji Ojo, Editor in Chief
相关阅读：
• Q1笔记本电脑出货强劲，全年可能突破2.36亿台规模
• 电子产品换代频繁，售后与回收市场升温
• “白菜价”电脑将为教育事业作出贡献 8DBesmc
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Dell Struggles in Post-PC World
Bolaji Ojo
The computing market is headed where Dell Inc. (Nasdaq: DELL) is weakest. The company has no easily recognizable offerings in the tablet PC or smartphone markets, but that's where demand is booming and not in the consumer and enterprise computer segments Dell once dominated and where it is still one of the leading players.
Dell isn't alone. Many other PC manufacturers that have yet to find their footing in the new world of small format computing are facing a similar problem -- how to maintain product relevance in a market fascinated with tablets and smartphones and dominated primarily by Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Korea: SEC). Aside from these two rivals, the other competitors in the tablet and smartphone markets are hanging on tightly to wafer-thin market shares, fueling speculation that some of these may have to exit the sector to stop losing money.
It's not that Dell is losing money. The company has too many other competitive products to slide into the red simply because of declining demand for PCs from consumers and corporate buyers. For the fiscal 2013 first quarter ended May 4, Dell reported net income of $635 million, down from $945 million in the year-ago quarter. Sales fell 10 percent on a sequential basis and 4 percent year-over-year, to $14.4 billion from $15 billion in the first quarter of fiscal 2012. The decline was a surprise to both investors and even Dell executives who attributed it to poor sales execution, a weakening global economic environment, and pressure from competing platforms, essentially tablets and smartphones.
Brian Gladden, Dell's CFO explained further during a conference call with analysts:
There are a few key causes to the [revenue] shortfall. Our sales execution was not up to our expectations, and we've made changes to improve this as we head into the second quarter. The demand environment was tougher than we planned, and I'd specifically highlight weaker demand in markets like EMEA and parts of Asia, in addition to public markets.
Finally, we're seeing a more challenging competitive environment in a few areas of the business. Our notebook business contracted 10 percent, as we saw a more aggressive competitive environment, particularly in the entry level and emerging markets. We believe some of the tougher competitive environment can be attributed to channel inventory rebuilding, following the hard disk issues of the past two quarters. In addition, we're seeing more consumer IT spending diverted to alternative mobile computing devices. These dynamics impacted both our revenue and margins for the quarter.
As rising sales of tablet PCs and smartphones eat into demand for personal computers, manufacturers that don't have a strong position in the hotter product sectors have engaged in a savage PC pricing war to gain market share. Gladden said Dell was concerned "about the impact of the competitive pricing environment" but the company isn't in a strong enough position to withstand the onslaught. It has no compelling tablet or smartphone offering to rival Apple's iPad/iPhone or the Galaxy smartphone from Samsung. To keep its market share, Dell may have to dive again into the low-end PC market, an area it previously shunned to stave off downward margin pressures.
If Dell and rivals in the same position are expecting any relief from corporate IT spending, they should rather brace for a further pounding. Although enterprise IT requirements are typically different than those of the consumer electronics market, the dividing line is beginning to blur slowly. Enterprise users are transitioning more functionalities to tablets and largely ignoring desktop PCs. While demand for notebooks is expected to remain strong for a while, many companies are exploring the utility of tablets for workers, especially those in sales for whom mobility, ease of use, and graphics are highly important.
Dell executives insist they aren't too worried about sales erosion in the enterprise PC market. I think they should be. While tablets may not completely replace notebooks for some users, they are being used as supplementary devices and therefore reducing the amount companies can spend on other IT equipment. Said Stephen Felice, president and chief commercial officer at Dell:
Consumer spending on desktops and notebooks continues to be under pressure, and much of the growth in Consumer has migrated to entry-level products in emerging markets, where we've chosen not to participate. We're also seeing some IT spending prioritized to purchase other mobile devices. Now this is mostly a consumer dynamic, but there is clearly some impact in areas of commercial as well.
While Dell is obviously unable to walk away for now from the PC market, it is intensifying efforts and broadening offerings in the fast-growing tablet sector. Again, it's not alone, and the tablet market is getting as crowded as the PC market once was. And that's a problem.
责编：Quentin
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