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List:       koffice
Subject:    Re: [kde] KDE version of OpenOffice?
From:       Vadim Plessky <lucy-ples () mtu-net ! ru>
Date:       2002-11-06 7:58:01
[Download RAW message or body]

On Friday 01 November 2002 1:46 pm, Piotr Gawrysiak wrote:
[...]
|  I agree, but the problem - I think - is that the users' opinions are much
|  more important here. The desktop environment which is more popular will be
|  developed faster and more actively because it attracts more attention. And
|  its popularity will grow if it attracts more attention. The same applies
| for other applications.
|
|  Summing up - I think that as Open Office is multiplatform it attracts more
|  media attention (and this is very important - several of my friends and
|  coworkers - some not even IT people - knew about Open Office and were
|  willing to give it a try or support the project somehow. None heard about
|  KOffice :-( ). It seems that currently OO has much greater potential to
|  attract developers, and attract businesses because of this.
|

I would like to contribute to this thread even further.

http://news.com.com/2100-1001-964504.html?tag=fd_lede1_hed
Does Corel's life jacket have a leak? 
By David Becker 
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
 November 5, 2002, 4:00 AM PT
 
On the verge of extinction two years ago, software publisher Corel has been on 
a roll lately. 

Almost every major PC maker has signed deals in the past few months to use 
Corel's WordPerfect office software on low-end PCs, in place of more 
expensive Microsoft products.

 But analysts say those high-profile deals are ultimately unlikely to help 
Corel turn around a growing string of losses that have depressed the Canadian 
company's stock to the point where it now trades below cash value.
[...]
While these deals have won Corel widespread attention for cracking Microsoft's 
presumed monopoly in office software, they won't have any immediate payoff 
for the Canadian company, which is practically giving the software to PC 
makers for free. While the company won't reveal the price it's charging, 
company executives said during Corel's most recent earnings call not to 
expect a significant increase in revenue from PC makers, or original 
equipment manufacturers (OEMs).

Instead, Corel expects to eventually generate income from sales to customers 
upgrading from the stripped-down version of WordPerfect sold to OEMs--either 
to the full WordPerfect suite or to later versions of WordPerfect itself.

 "The purpose of it is really a seeding strategy," Corel CEO Derek Burney said 
of the OEM deals. "The significance is that we can get our products in the 
hands of millions of users who might not otherwise have a chance to 
experience them. It's a way for us to show the world that there is a value 
opportunity out there.

"They're growing their installed base on a product that was, for the most 
part, 'end-of-life' a few years ago," he said. "The customers will eventually 
go through a renewal cycle, and they want to migrate between products. If 
Corel can go after them at a price point they're willing to pay--under 
$200--they can get some business. The problem in the past is they've wanted 
to price their suite at the same level as Microsoft (has)." 

But the entry-level customers buying the low-end PCs that WordPerfect will be 
installed on are unlikely to become lifelong friends of Corel once they 
realize the bundled version of the software includes no tech support, said 
Jeffrey Tarter, editor of software industry newsletter Softletter. 

"These are entry-level systems--systems primarily intended for newcomers to 
computing," he said. "They're going to kids and the elderly and people with 
very limited experience with computing. To give those people very 
feature-rich, complex applications and expect them to figure it out--it's not 
going to make people real happy." 

Such price-sensitive customers are also less likely to pay for upgrades, 
especially when free alternatives such as Sun Microsystems' OpenOffice 
package are available, Illuminata's Eunice said. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Few comments:
a) author doesn't mention KOffice (which is Bad)
b) it seems WordPerfect is perceived as much more mature product than 
OpenOffice.  
And author doesn't mention (doesn't know?) that OpenOffice has roots in 
StarOffice.
c) support is important.
I think we have very reasonable support for KOffice users, via on-line 
community / mailing lists. 
d) all in all, it seems Corel in now targeting entry-level market, same markte 
targeted by Lindows.com, Xandros, Lycoris.
And I hardly see how Corel can compete with those, unless having Office Suit 
running on WIndows is *requirement*.

[...]
|
|  Best reagards,
|
|  Piotr Gawrysiak
|  ____________________________________
|  koffice mailing list
|  koffice@mail.kde.org
|  To unsubscribe please visit:
|  http://mail.kde.org/mailman/listinfo/koffice

-- 

Vadim Plessky
http://kde2.newmail.ru  (English)
33 Window Decorations and 6 Widget Styles for KDE
http://kde2.newmail.ru/kde_themes.html
KDE mini-Themes
http://kde2.newmail.ru/themes/

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