April 29, 2006

The Battle for Your Computer's Microprocessor: Innovation and Lower Prices

Intel's market share of computer processor's has dipped below 80% writes a recent CNN Fortune report. The report reads It might seem obvious for a company to acknowledge such things, but along with Intel's longtime status as one of the tech industry's two central monopoly-owners came a certain arrogance and complacency.

For many years the PC world has been dominated by Microsoft and Intel. Microsoft is facing serious challenges from hosted application providers and open source software (to a lesser degree). Google and others are giving Microsoft a HUGE competitive threat.

As far as Intel goes, AMD continues to gain market share and force a reduction in prices for the PC and a refocus of this market by Intel. The report continues to read PC companies all want choice, as any customer does in any market, and having two suppliers enables them to pit one against another. The last thing any PC company wants is for Intel to regain its quasi-monopoly status. This fact alone will help sustain AMD's market position.

What does this mean for you? Lower prices. But not only prices. In the same way that Google is in many ways forcing Microsoft and other companies to innovate and give customers better products, AMD rising competition will force Intel to innovate more and better - benefiting us all.

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