The global PC market is expected to make modest growth in 2005, with PC shipments growing by 10.1 percent to 195.1 million in 2005. That is the finding of a report published today by market research firm IDC, who say that their forecast for 2005 is "buoyed by strong third quarter results and continued PC demand in the commercial sector."
"[The commercial sector is] expected to post 11.3 percent growth in PC shipments next year compared with consumer growth rates of 8 percent worldwide and just 5.1 percent in the United States. In the third quarter, growth in worldwide consumer PC shipments slipped to less than 8 percent, down from a peak of more than 25 percent in the year-ago quarter."
Market research firm Gartner, however, released a forecast last month that claimed that the PC industry would experience further consolidation driven by slower growth rates. It expects this to lead to three of the top 10 PC makers exiting the market by 2007.