HP grows to world's number one PC vendor

Results from both analyst firms for the period mark Q306 as at least the third consecutive quarter that HP has grown faster worldwide than the global market, while HP also reported record revenue and operating margins for its Personal Systems Group (PSG) in the fiscal third quarter.

"We are delighted to have reclaimed the number one share position in a period where we also achieved profitability and revenue milestones for the business," said Todd Bradley, Executive Vice President, PSG, HP. "HP has balanced strength across the consumer and business segments in countries around the world and the broadest selection of personal technology and support to address the work, entertainment or mobile preferences of most any customer.

Anil Gandhi, General Manager, PSG, HP Middle East, said: "This is also a significant milestone for HP Middle East as we claim the number one PC vendor spot in the region. Our consistent strength in the marketplace tells us we've built the right strategy to meet our customer's needs and continue our great success."

According to the IDC Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker, while the worldwide PC market for the third quarter of 2006 grew at 7.9 percent, HP's third calendar quarter worldwide PC shipments grew at a rate of 15.1 percent to 17.2 percent market share, nearly twice as fast as the worldwide market. HP's U.S. market share also grew faster than the market in the third quarter to increase share 1.6 percentage points to 22 percent from 20.4 percent year over year.

Gartner's Top 5 Preliminary PC Market Results for the third quarter of 2006 also show HP in the number one position at 16.3 percent market share, 0.2 percentage points ahead of its nearest competitor.

The positive market share results come on the heels of other recent news from the HP Personal Systems Group. Last month, HP announced the acquisition of high-end gaming company VoodooPC and introduced more than 20 new consumer products to enhance the high-definition digital lifestyle.