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See Full StoryFinancially, 2002 was not a gangbuster year for IBM -- revenue from continuing operations declined 3 percent. But the company still earned $5.3 billion in the year, even as most firms struggled to stay out of the red zone. Its WebSphere software dominates the e-business arena, and its consulting division is rock-solid. How did IBM thrive in such a difficult environment -- and can the company extend its streak of success now that the era of Lou Gerstner, who taught the IBM elephant to dance, is over?
This article fails to take into account the lack of transparency to IBM's software business. Barron's ran two articles about how industry analyst numbers have inflated IBM's market share figures in software [middleware and database]. These articles call into question industry analyst reliance on vendors for data, and the difference between figures that vendors report to the SEC and to industry analysts.
Barron's site is password protected, but the "technology" section headlines are: "Plugged In: IBM, IDC and the Market-Share Scramble" from Jan. 20 and "Plugged In: Squabbling Titans" from Jan. 27."
Anyone who tracks IBM software and has listened to reported statements of growth should read these articles. The following is an excerpt from the Jan. 20 article:
"Trouble is, technology-research firms basically take numbers provided to them by various companies, many of which are consulting clients, and report calculated figures based on those numbers. And, in the case of IBM's middleware revenue, there appears to be a major discrepancy between IDC's data and the figures that IBM reported to the federal government.
"According to figures provided by IDC and based on input from IBM, Big Blue's middleware revenue soared 14% in 2001, to $10.17 billion from $8.9 billion a year earlier. But that dwarfs the gain indicated by IBM in a 10K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. IBM's 2001 middleware revenue rose only 2.7%, to $10.35 billion from $10.08 billion a year earlier, the filing suggests."
The truth is out there!
Barron's site is password protected, but the "technology" section headlines are: "Plugged In: IBM, IDC and the Market-Share Scramble" from Jan. 20 and "Plugged In: Squabbling Titans" from Jan. 27."
Anyone who tracks IBM software and has listened to reported statements of growth should read these articles. The following is an excerpt from the Jan. 20 article:
"Trouble is, technology-research firms basically take numbers provided to them by various companies, many of which are consulting clients, and report calculated figures based on those numbers. And, in the case of IBM's middleware revenue, there appears to be a major discrepancy between IDC's data and the figures that IBM reported to the federal government.
"According to figures provided by IDC and based on input from IBM, Big Blue's middleware revenue soared 14% in 2001, to $10.17 billion from $8.9 billion a year earlier. But that dwarfs the gain indicated by IBM in a 10K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. IBM's 2001 middleware revenue rose only 2.7%, to $10.35 billion from $10.08 billion a year earlier, the filing suggests."
The truth is out there!
