Thursday, October 20, 2005

Apple's Market Share Increase and Growth

According to an IDC report, Apple's sales and marketshare are on the rise.

In the U.S., Apple Computer Inc. ranked fifth on IDC's report with 737,000 total shipments which equates to a 4.3% share of the market and a 44.6% increase on a year-over-year basis. Based on IDC's numbers, the increase to 4.3% is up from 3.3%, a significant US marketshare gain. Gartner, who measures shipments differently than IDC, reports that Apple ranks fourth in U.S. with 744,000 shipments and a 4.2% share of the market.

In a Yahoo News story titled, "PC Sales In Q3 Top Forecasts; Apple, Acer Up" an IDC analyst stated the following:

"Apple continues to experience a halo effect from its popular iPod portable music players.

The company has been able to win converts to its Macintosh computers, thanks to positive media exposure and happy iPod customers, who want to give Apple PCs a try. Apple also updated its low-cost Mac Mini computers during the quarter."


There have been several reports about the iPod Halo Effect. The "halo effect" surrounding the iPod is believed to drive iPod owners to purchase Mac computers. Many of these purchasers are first time Mac owners:

- 400,000 Windows users Switch to Mac - Analyst

- Apple to begin a new Ad campaign highlighting Macs?

- IPods, Tiger to head up Apple report - Computer Hardware - Technology, Hardware and Equipment - Earnings

- Apple Announces the iPod Nano and iTunes Phone

- New Video iPod, stronger iPod Halo Effect, More Switchers

Apple's growth in PC shipments has also been strengthened by an increase in shipments from company's education division. Apple ranks third in worldwide education computer shipments behind Dell and Hewlett Packard. However, in the U.S. Apple ranks second behind Dell. On a fourth quater to fourth quarter comparison between 2005 and 2004, Apple experienced a rise of 15.08% percent in worldwide education shipments and a 13.79% increase in U.S. education shipments.

The "Switch To A Mac" is a real observable occurance and these latest data points demonstrate that Apple is experiencing a dramatic growth in market share. I expect this growth to continue as more people purchase their first Macs and make the switch.

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