Indian PC market grew 3.5 percent in 2012, IDC

Domestic computer market grew 3.5 per cent to 11 million units in 2012 compared to previous year, driven by projects like ELCOT and spurt in consumer demand for notebooks. 

The growth in consumer PC market was driven by growing shift in end-user demand towardsportable PCs, which grew at 20.2 per cent in 2012 over 2011, IDC said in a statement. 

"In the face of ongoing challenges from a slowing economy and high inflation, the rise in consumer optimism is a welcome sign for the India PC market," IDC Research Manager Kiran Kumar said. 

This is reflected in the improved retail footfalls, particularly among large format retailers (LFRs), which continue to act as a catalyst in driving consumer demand, Kumar added. 

On the other hand, commercial PC business outside special projects like ELCOT, witnessed continued instability as the commercial desktops crumbled to a three-year low in the second half of 2012. 

The overall confidence of enterprises took a backseat as they were trying to cope with adverse business conditions and rupee volatility, Kumar said. 

Lenovo claimed the top spot with a 15.9 per cent market share in 2012, supported by Tamil Nadu's ELCOT project. 

The state-run Electronics Corporation of Tamil Nadu (ELCOT) had issued a tender seeking rate contract for over nine lakh laptops to be supplied. 

HP gained the second spot with a shipment share of 15.2 per cent, followed by Acer and Dell at at 13.2 per cent and 13 per cent, respectively. 

"Outside ELCOT, HP registered a significant growth, driven by their continued focus on product mix, price positioning and strong partner engagement," IDC Market Analyst Manish Yadav said. 

Similarly, Lenovo recorded a substantial growth in the consumer PC market, driven by sustained investments on marketing and expanding channel presence, Yadav added. 

"Driven by demand from portable PCs, we expect the India PC market to register a double digit growth in 2013 despite downward pressures driven by longer refresh cycles seen in the recent periods," IDC Research Director Venu Reddy said. 

This trend of longer refresh cycles could be due to lower levels of usage of laptops as some of the activities are accomplished using tablets, Reddy added. 

"We also anticipate the execution of special projects in the states of Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh to beef up the overall PC market in 2013," Reddy said adding that such special projects could be repeated in few of the larger states with forthcoming elections in 10 states.