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From the Editor–continued from page 7The World’s Leading i-Technology PublisherPresident & CEOFuat Kircaali fuat@sys-con.comGroup PublisherJeremy Geelan jeremy@sys-con.com[ A D V E R T I S I N G ]Senior VP, Sales & MarketingCarmen Gonzalez carmen@sys-con.comVP, Sales & MarketingMiles Silverman miles@sys-con.comAdvertising DirectorRobyn Forma robyn@sys-con.comAdvertising Sales ManagerMegan Mussa megan@sys-con.comAssociate Sales ManagerKerry Mealia kerry@sys-con.com[ P R O D U C T I O N ]Art DirectorAlex Botero alex@sys-con.comAssociate Art DirectorsAbraham Addo abraham@sys-con.comLouis F. Cuffari louis@sys-con.comTami Lima tami@sys-con.comAssistant Art DirectorAndrea Boden andrea@sys-con.com[ S Y S - C O N E V E N T S ]President, EventsGrisha Davida grisha@sys-con.comother manufacturers to fabricate these chips asalternatives to Sun’s contracted suppliers and introducecompetition into the market. Sun wouldwelcome other vendors selling the chip to giveit multiple suppliers. In turn it would realize thebenefits from increased competition and redundancyin its supply chain and be able to pass savingson to the consumer (the cynic in me mightthink differently but it sounds good in theory).Sun would still make a profit supporting and sellingsoftware for this commoditized hardware, asMicrosoft does on Intel and AMD chips.If you advance this idea one step forward,consider a laptop builder who did the same for astandard laptop design, giving the specs for powersupplies, compatible motherboards, and otherdetails that entrepreneurially minded componentsmakers could produce. In the beginningthey might make the whole laptop, a baselinemodel ripe for upgrades; others could join thesupply chain. Each one could provide its ownvalue-added services. For example, one vendor“Even in the era of the open laptop I wouldn’t say thatthere would be no place for the Dells of the world”National Sales ManagerJim Hanchrow jimh@sys-con.com[ C U S T O M E R R E L AT I O N S ]Circulation Service CoordinatorEdna Earle Russell edna@sys-con.com[ S Y S - C O N . C O M ]Information Systems ConsultantRobert Diamond robert@sys-con.comWeb DesignersStephen Kilmurray stephen@sys-con.comWayne Uffleman wayne@sys-con.com[ A C C O U N T I N G ]Financial AnalystJoan LaRose joan@sys-con.comAccounts PayableBetty White betty@sys-con.comAccounts ReceivableGail Naples gailn@sys-con.com[ S U B S C R I P T I O N S ]888-303-5282201-802-3012subscribe@sys-con.comFor subscriptions and requests for bulk orders,please send your letters to Subscription DepartmentCover Price: $5.99/issueDomestic: $49.99/yr (12 issues)Canada/Mexico: $79.99/yrall other countries $99.99/yr(U.S. Banks or Money Orders)Back issues: $12 U.S. $15 all otherscould specialize in making cool neon colors ortitanium cases. Another could focus solely ondesigning power supplies that reduce the amountof heat generated. Battery companies could innovatearound battery life. The result would beinnovation driven by competition.Back to my entrepreneurially minded friend,who asks, “Why would a company do this andhow would it make money?” I think if you wantedto enter the laptop market and compete withDell, Gateway, HP, and Lenovo, you’d need a lotof capital. But if you formed a co-op of sorts youcould compete at that level rather quickly by distributingthe capital outlay among the ecosystem,or over time it would evolve, as would the breadthand options of your product with each vendorfocusing specifically on its own value-added service.Maybe it’s assembly, high-end upgrades, ortechnical support (driver development and otherservices). Developing technology products can bevery difficult to do well on all fronts. If you couldfocus on one area that would make you competitive,the end product would be better, also thelaptop designers could focus on their core competency.AOpen does this to some degree alreadywith its white box line and would be a logicalcompany to take the concept one step further.iGo (www.igo.com), a mobility electronics supplier,has recognized the need for competition. iGomakes mobile chargers and external batteries thatconnect everything from notebooks and MP3 playersto mobile phones. However, it offers some interestingenhancements including modular tips tofit different models and types of electronic devices.It also addresses the different power source needsof the mobile computer by offering adapters thatcan draw power from standard outlets, airplanes,and automobiles. This is somewhat innovativesince now you can get more use out of your charger.Actually its usable life can outlast your laptop’ssince it offers iTips that connect to present as wellas future devices.Besides flexibility, another benefit of an openlaptop should be quality of service. In the desktopPC market, IDC’s 2002 report showed that whitebox vendors accounted for 58% of total worldwidePC sales. With the shift from desktop to laptop,it would seem that same opportunity could andshould be addressed by “whitelap” vendors. Sincethe parts would be more widely available, smallerservice shops could specialize in servicing thisnew breed of laptop. Supply chains could be establishedin the same way as they are for RAM andstorage. Also, since there would be fewer barriersto entry, these vendors could compete on service,including premium support that lives up to itsbilling. Repairs could be made at a local level byprofessionals that you have a relationship with,not a call center employee in another country. Youwould also have a choice not only in hardware butsoftware where the market demand would driveoperating system choices, not deals betweenmega-vendors. A Linux laptop could be an optionthat doesn’t penalize vendors who are obligated topay a fee for every machine shipped.Even in the era of the open laptop I wouldn’tsay that there would be no place for the Dells ofthe world, in fact with their huge buying powerthey will probably be able to compete on price indefinitely.In fact they would likely have the sameplace as Wal-Mart does in household goods whereits buying power and logistical efficiency allowsit to be a price leader. That’s where the advantagewould end, however. I believe as we become moredependent on our PCs, as I am, this market wouldbe better serviced by the local vendor who is paidfor his expertise and for reselling replacementparts. I will welcome the day when I can buy mylaptop from someone that I can develop a personalrelationship with and can address my needscompletely and locally. How about you?LINUXWORLD MAGAZINE WWW.LINUXWORLD.COMwww.LinuxWorld.com7APRIL 2006