IDC places 3Com number one in European handheld companion market

International Data Corporation (IDC) has revealed that 3Com has taken a 46.8 per cent share of the European handheld companion market, 17.1 per cent more than its nearest competitor, which holds 29.7 per cent.

IDC`s findings are evidence of the dramatic success Palm Computing`s connected organisers have enjoyed in European consumer and enterprise markets. Commenting on the figures, Alison McKenzie, research manger, IDC, said: "IDC projects that are Palm OS operating system will be the leading operating system in the handheld companion market worldwide for 1999."

"These figures are a clear validation of our philosophy: simple and fast access to information combined with an open platform and the sector`s most compact product," says Neville Street, Palm Computing`s general manager, international. "The Palm III organiser, launched in March of last year, set new standards for the industry, while the number of developers and applications for the platform has continued to grow at an unprecedented rate. 1999 promises to be even more exciting as we push the boundaries of mobile computing even further."

Sales of the Palm Computing family of connected organisers have proved equally strong elsewhere in the world, explains 3Com SA`s product marketing manager, Gavin Levin. The company enjoys a 63 per cent world-wide market share (Dataquest, 1998) and accounts for 72 per cent of the U.S. personal companion market (IDC, 1999). The Palm Computing platform has an installed base of more than 2 million units, with over 12,000 software developers building applications for the platform.