Does the Decline in PC Shipments Matter to MSPs?

Worldwide PC shipments continue to decline, according to the latest numbers from International Data Corp. (IDC), but do PC sales numbers really matter if you are a managed service provider (MSP)? MSPmentor spoke with some MSPs about how the changes would affect the managed services market, and here's what they said. But first, some background. 

IDC reported this week that worldwide PC shipments are expected to fall by 10.1 percent in 2013, reflecting a 5 percent year-over-year decline in the commercial PC market.

IDC Worldwide Quarterly PC Trackers Senior Research Analyst Jay Choice said in a statement that the "lack of reasons to replace an older system" is a concern for PC demand in the future.

"While IDC research finds that the PC still remains the primary computing device – for example, PCs are used more hours per day than tablets or phones – PC usage is nonetheless declining each year as more devices become available," he said. "And despite industry efforts, PC usage has not moved significantly beyond consumption and productivity tasks to differentiate PCs from other devices."

CCNS Consulting owner Karl Bickmore said the rise of tablet systems puts MSPs into a market where "one system is purchased for a desktop, laptop and tablet.

"This immediately reduces the number of systems that will be sold going forward," he said. "The good news for us is that we are a service-focused business and there is all sorts of new service opportunities surrounding the new set of multipurpose devices."

Bickmore added: "I think this is only the beginning of a long-predicted major reset of the entire desktop and server market that has been underway for a couple of years now."

While some believe the decline in PC shipments will affect the managed services market, others do not feel — at least not directly. Webistix, Inc CEO Vincent Dispigno told MSPmentor that "the decline in PC shipments does not not really affect" his MSP business.

"In fact we on-boarded five new clients last month," he said. "Our new MSP clients rarely add managed service as part of a new PC rollout project. Most of the time they are experiencing pain points with an existing infrastructure that we can stabilize, improve and them monitor and support."

Dispingo noted, however, that "tablets are a growing part" of his business, pointing out that they are being purchased to replace some desktop and notebook PCs.

"Mobile device management is going to be a growth area for us next year," he said.

Bickmore suggested that the decline in PC sales will be more of an issue in 2015 than in 2014.

"In the near term, the discontinuance of Windows XP will actually mean a large uptick in PC sales over the next six to nine months," he said. "So for 2014, we are expecting strong PC sales. I predict that rather than 2014 being an issue its 2015 that will be our big decline in PC sales."