Revised server numbers show HP 'decline'
Published: 05 Jun 2003 12:28 BST
Hewlett-Packard's server business declined more than originally thought in 2002, according to revised market-share figures from research firm Gartner. IBM and Sun Microsystems, on the other hand, did better than reported.
IBM also accounted for more server sales than anyone in the first quarter of 2003, according to the new Gartner figures, which contrast an IDC report earlier this month that had handed the crown to HP.
An underestimation of HP's worldwide server revenue in the fourth quarter of 2001 prompted Gartner to revise its overall growth/decline figures for 2002 and its figures for the last quarter of the year. The increase in the 2001 figures meant HP's 2002 figures were falling from a greater height.
In the fourth quarter of 2002, HP saw its market share, as defined by revenue, decline by 16 percent, rather than 6 percent, as previously stated by Gartner. HP's share of Unix server revenue, a subset of the market, dropped 15 percent, rather than by growing 6 percent.
Overall, HP sold $10.8bn worth of servers in 2002, 25.2 percent of the $43.1bn market, under the revised numbers.
Gartner analyst Jeff Hewitt said the confusion came about because Gartner released its figures before HP released quarterly results and HP didn't provide feedback when Gartner asked about its numbers.
"It was let go for a while," Hewitt said. "Nobody from HP came forward and said you know what, this needs to be corrected. Our numbers were too low. It made the growth rates anomalous."
Sun, meanwhile, benefited. The company saw its revenue share of the market decline by 10 percent, rather than 16 percent, as previously believed. Sun accounted for 15.1 percent of the overall server revenue in 2002.
As a result of the re-count, IBM, the largest server company, saw its 2002 market share climb slightly. But Big Blue will probably crow more loudly about the turning of the tables on HP for the first quarter of 2003.
Gartner said IBM racked up $3.2bn, or 30 percent, of worldwide server revenue in the first quarter, a growth of 8 percent. HP came in second with $2.6bn, or 24.7 percent, of the $10.6bn market, a decline of 7 percent.
The two companies have been battling over servers for some time and were tied for first in Unix revenue during the fourth quarter of 2002, according to IDC.
Sun and Dell came in at third and fourth, respectively, in the first quarter, but with an important difference. Sun's market share, as defined by revenue, declined 20 percent, to $1.4bn, while Dell's market position grew 23 percent, to $938m. The market overall declined by 1 percent.
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