Intel recently outlined the technology trends that will boost the company's and its channel partners' business opportunities.
The Internet, which has been largely developed around Intel-architecture based PCs, would shift to an immersive and mobile web experience in the future, and the biggest trend would be richer media experiences, such as Skype, YouTube and social networking sites, said Navin Shenoy, Intel vice-president, sales and marketing group and general manager of the Asia-Pacific region.
''Video will be the biggest single driver for the Internet going forward, and every country around the world has that kind of rich media and that creates great opportunities'' he said recently at the Intel Solutions Summit.
In 1996, 200 million users used computers while last year the number exceeded one billion, he said.
''What we see is more users getting richer media and this reinforces the Internet spiral,'' Shenoy said, noting that these things drove Intel's business and that was the reason Intel brought out new technology every year.
Every notebook would ''go Internet'' and notebooks would outship desktops in early 2009, despite forecasts a few years ago that this would not take place until 2011.
First-time buyers would mostly buy desktops, but the big trend was towards notebooks because of better mobility, good performance and falling costs, he said, adding that in countries like Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, India and Pakistan, the growth rate of notebook sales was over 100 percent.
Notebook PCs would get smaller and smaller, and there was a new category developing--the Netbook--which was very simple and portable, Shenoy said.
Netbooks and Nettops would be two new categories which were centered on the simple, affordable and Internet-centric Intel Atom processor, he said.
A whole range of Netbooks will be seen in June at Computec, Taiwan.
The 45nm High-K transistor technology, which will be available by Q3 this year, is another big trend that Intel has encouraged channel partners to embrace.
According to Tom Rampone, vice-president and general manager, Channel Platforms Group, mobility was a huge opportunity for channels.
''Rich Creek 2'' is the codename for a new mobile motherboard form factor specification that expands Intel's ongoing efforts with the industry to develop interchangeable building blocks for notebook components.
Rich Creek 2 products will be rolled out, starting with select local integrators and local OEMs and ODMs in several barebone and complete notebook configurations.
Intel, as well as other industry partners, will offer Intel Mobile Boards based on Rich Creek 2 that will launch with the Intel Centrino 2 platform.
Initially, Intel's Mobile Boards will be available in a barebones configuration from ODM's and local integrators but not as a stand-alone product.
According to Steve Dallman, vice-president, sales and marketing group and general manager, reseller channel organisation, Intel has launched several programs to encourage channel partners, including Reach Online, Intel Flex+, and a new revenue model.
Intel Flex+ was the new benefit program recently announced in North America and various European countries, and it would be launched in the Asia-Pacific region over the coming few months.
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