Intel outlines Dollars 1bn PC push
Paul Otellini, chief executive of the world’s biggest chipmaker, will introduce the new programme, "World Ahead", in a speech to the World Congress on Information Technology in Austin, Texas tomorrow.
The five-year objectives are to extend broadband PC access to the world’s next 1bn users and train 10m more teachers on the use of technology in education.
As markets mature and PC growth slows in the developed world, Intel is looking to prime the pump for demand for its processors in emerging economies. PC penetration is only 2.8 per cent in the developing world compared with more than 80 per cent in the US.
Mr Otellini will show a new design for a classroom PC and talk about the development of fully featured, affordable PCs designed for specific regions.
The company has developed reference designs for PCs in Chinese internet cafes and rural communities in India. Six more designs for different geographies are planned over the next two years, while Intel is donating 100,000 PCs to classrooms in developing nations.
In another attempt to grow the PC market, Intel, in concert with Samsung and Microsoft, yesterday launched its first ultra mobile PC in the US. The Q1, made by Samsung, is seen as the first of a new category of computers that will fill a gap between handheld PCs and standard notebooks.
It will go on sale at Dollars 1,099 next week on the Best Buy electronics website.
The Semiconductor Industry Association reported yesterday that worldwide chip sales were 7.3 per cent higher in the first quarter compared with a year earlier, at Dollars 59.1bn. The SIA industry body said growth was driven by mobile phone sales, with unit chip sales up 31 per cent on a year ago.
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