Compaq, IBM Lead PC Sales in 1997

Compaq Computer Corp. and IBM Corp. led another strong year for personal computer sales in 1997, according to research firm Dataquest. About 82 million computers were shipped worldwide last year, a 15.8% increase over 1996, Dataquest said. Compaq retained its No. 1 rank as its market share grew to 12.4% from 10.1%. No. 2 IBM, No. 3 Dell Computer Corp. and No. 4 Hewlett-Packard Co. all saw worldwide gains as well, at the expense of Packard Bell NEC, whose share dropped from 6% to 4.8%. Dell’s shipments grew 62.3%, H-P’s 55.9%, and Compaq’s 42.4%. Total U.S. shipments rose 20.9% to 31 million units. Compaq also topped the U.S. list, followed by Dell, Packard Bell NEC, IBM and Gateway 2000.