Retail push
Even within the channel not everyone knows quite how big Foxconn actually is. It is the brand name of Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd, which is the largest privately owned company in Taiwan and probably the biggest manufacturer of PC-related products in the world.
As well as Foxconn-branded products, Hon Hai is a key manufacturing partner of most of the major PC vendors in the world, including Dell and Apple, at a design as well as outsourced manufacturing level. “Foxconn grew massively in the late ‘90s as a company that invested heavily in manufacturing. It’s grown to be the largest privately owned company in Taiwan and has around 600,000 employees worldwide. It does a lot of contract manufacturing,” says Ling.
“It’s no accident that Foxconn has become perceived as more of a system-builder product range as this is the market we have traditionally targeted. Quantum Force is part of a move to broaden the perception of our brand. Foxconn wants to turn itself into a retail brand.”
"Foxconn wants to turn itself into a retail brand.”We ask Ling which motherboard vendors he thinks Foxconn should try to emulate. “If you look at the motherboard market, Asustek has very strong brand recognition and that is the sort of thing we are aiming for from an awareness point of view,” he says. “Obviously we are aiming to have better products and better service behind it. On the product and service side, Abit has a good reputation.”
True to his word, Ling took the Quantum Force Road show to enthusiast PC retailer Yoyotech in central London last Saturday, as previewed on HEXUS.net.
We spoke to Yoyotech owner CK after the event to find out his take on Foxconn’s new offering. “I think we have new contender for gaming number one – if they can keep it up they could be giving Asus a hard time,” he said.
“I think we have new contender for gaming number one."“Foxconn does have the muscle to take Asus on and there is currently high demand for high-end boards, which Asus has never been able to meet. I’m really looking forward to working with Foxconn because they have shown me a real commitment to the end-user, as opposed to just concentrating on big etailers and distributors, which is very nice to hear from a manufacturer.”
There’s no doubting Foxconn does have the muscle this move should make Asus raise its game, which is great news for consumers and the channel. More competition should equal better products at lower prices, which should equate to greater demand. It will be interesting to see if Foxconn does achieve its aim of becoming a major consumer brand.
