IBM’s hardware storage business showed the strongest growth compared to all major vendors. Based on IDC’s data, IBM’s fourth quarter 2005 sales resulted in a 23.8% worldwide disk and tape storage revenue share, in a virtual tie with HP, which reached 23.2%, for the top share position in combined disk and tape storage systems.
“IBM continues to advance its position in the overall storage market, surpassing EMC and the other players, said IBM Storage General Manager Andy Monshaw. “Clients are incorporating all aspects of storage, from tape, to disk to software to help them manage the flood of data. IBM stands alone in providing the most comprehensive storage portfolio, which is why clients are increasingly turning to IBM to help them implement and cost effectively manage their storage assets.”
IDC noted in its report that it expects companies with complete portfolios of disk and tape storage offerings to leverage them to their advantage in coming quarters[1].
IBM’s number-one storage hardware ranking was driven by major gains as reported by IDC previously. IBM was number one in 2005 in worldwide branded tape drive and automation revenue, capturing 28% of the total $4.82 billion market[2]. In addition, IBM posted the fastest external disk storage systems sequential revenue growth in the fourth quarter of 2005 among the top three external disk storage vendors, also according to data by IDC[3]. In growing 49 percent sequentially worldwide, IBM outpaced both EMC and Hewlett-Packard. IBM also realized the fastest worldwide storage software growth among the top vendors in the fourth quarter of 2005[4]. Growing at 33 percent year over year, IBM outperformed both EMC and Symantec and was the only one of the three top vendors to increase its revenue share.
IBM continues to extend its leadership in storage on many fronts. Last month, IBM announced that it had demonstrated a world record in data density on linear magnetic tape by packing data onto a test tape at a density of 6.67 billion bits per square inch -- more than 15 times the data density of today's most popular industry standard magnetic tape products. In addition, IBM announced breakthrough enhancements to its storage virtualization engine software – IBM® System Storage™ SAN Volume Controller 4.1 -- that are designed to extend its reach to greater distances, greater speeds and a greater number of platforms. Last week, IBM announced the latest additions to the IBM System Storage N series line of NAS offerings. In May, IBM announced that the IBM Federated Records Management solution and IBM System Storage DR550 were named AIIM’s “Best of Show” in the records management and hardware storage categories.
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