bishop@milton.u.washington.edu (John Bishop) (04/06/91)
In the business section of today's (4/5) New York Times (comments enclosed in [] are mine): Next Posts Gains in Computer Sales ...Steve Jobs...said today that it [Next] had sold 8,000 computers in the first quarter of 1991, greatly exceeding previous sales levels. The shipment of 8000 computers in three monthes is not surprising. When Next introduced a new line of machines last fall, Mr. Jobs said that the company had 15,000 orders . But in an interview, ... Mr. Jobs said that orders appeared to be accelerating and that he thought Next could sell 50,000 machines this year. "If we could sell $200 million to $250 million of computers this year, which is quite possible, it will put us on the map as a viable player," he said. Mr. Jobs would not say whether the company is profitable, only that "we're in good shape in that regard." .... [I've deleted A couple of short paragraphs on the history of Next.] Mr. Jobs said that 60 percent of Next's sales were now to businesses and 40 percent to colleges, the company's original target market. About 30 percent of the company's sales are in Europe and Japan, he said. [End of article] Sorry if this becomes a duplicate post. I was surprised not to see a mention of it on the net, since many of you see the times some 6 hours before now. Analysis? How do you know if a private company really has done what it says it has? Is Jobs just trying to reassure would be buyers who are worried about the future of Next? Actually, I find it easy to believe the figure given how LONG it takes to get your machine once you order it (I've been waiting six weeks now for my slab). From the wording of the article, it wasn't clear if Next had sold or shipped 8,000 machines this quarter.
cmacaskl@gehenna (Chris McAskill) (04/06/91)
In article <1991Apr5.192345.22647@milton.u.washington.edu> bishop@milton.u.washington.edu (John Bishop) writes: > From the wording of the article, it wasn't clear if Next had > sold or shipped 8,000 machines this quarter. Shipped.
mcgredo@prism.cs.orst.edu (Don McGregor) (04/07/91)
In article <1991Apr5.192345.22647@milton.u.washington.edu> bishop@milton.u.washington.edu (John Bishop) writes: > "If we could sell $200 million to $250 million of computers >this year, which is quite possible, it will put us on the map as a >viable player," he said. > Mr. Jobs said that 60 percent of Next's sales were now to >businesses and 40 percent to colleges, the company's original target >market. About 30 percent of the company's sales are in Europe and >Japan, he said. [End of article] SUN 44,000 HP 20,000 DEC 8,000 IBM 12,000 NeXT 8,000 Not too shabby, order backlog or no. After all, that's only 1/2 of their original backlog, so they can put up the same numbers next quarter at the very least. If they can keep up some sales momentum until their new product rollouts next fall, they could be in good shape. Looks like they figure on an average of $5,000 per sale. The unit volume is probably of more interest to most software developers-- gives them more opportunities for sales. The business sales are a good sign. Don McGregor | "When transporting a monkey, don't let him take mcgredo@prism.cs.orst.edu| the wheel no matter how much he screeches."