Market News

September 17, 2012 // Julien Happich

In yet another sign that the technology industry has entered the post-PC era, personal computers during the second quarter accounted for less than half of the market for DRAM, the first time in a generation that they didn't consume the majority of the leading type of semiconductor memory.

PCs in the second quarter accounted for 49.0 of DRAM bit shipments, down from 50.2 percent in the first quarter, according to an IHS iSuppli DRAM Dynamics Brief from information and analytics provider IHS.

The fall is notable, given that the share of PCs hasnt dipped below 50 percent since the 1980s, when personal computers were a new product whose sales were rising at rapid clip. After accounting for the overwhelming share of DRAM buying for decades, average PC share from the first quarter of 2008 until the fourth quarter of 2011 hovered at approximately 55 percent, with share fluctuating periodically but generally trending down.

An era explained

This event symbolizes the decline of the PC market because of smartphone and media tablets. However, beyond symbolism, the development also illustrates the diminishing dominion of PCs in the electronics supply chain.

The arrival of the post-PC era doesnt mean that people will stop using personal computers, or even necessarily that the PC market will stop expanding, said Clifford Leimbach, memory analyst at IHS. What the post-PC era does mean is that personal computers are not at the center of the technology universe anymoreand are seeing their hegemony over the electronics supply chain erode. PCs are no longer generating the kind of growth and overwhelming market size that can single-handedly drive demand, pricing and technology trends in some of the major technology businesses.

The fact that PCs have lost their majority share of the DRAM marketan area completely defined and dominated by personal computers for about 30 yearsrepresents a major milestone and the arrival of a new era in technology.

Originally posted here:
PC share of DRAM market dips below 50 percent for first time, says IHS