According to Reuters news service "Dell in Talks with Google over Chrome O/S."  I would like to think this is a big deal for Dell, and positive, but I'm doubtful.

Eight months ago I wrote (10/20/09 – Keep an Eye on Dell – Good Things Happening) that Dell's efforts to bring a smart phone to market showed real promise for the company.  Michael Dell seemed committed to shaking things up in order to launch new products.  And in February I wrote (2/22/10 Looking for Winners – Dell) not to be too worried about Dell's small desktop market share losses because Dell needed to be heading into new markets – like Smart phones – seeking growth rather than over-investing in its old desktop business.

But I've since turned much more negative.  The Reuter's article points out that Dell still hasn't gotten the smart phone to market in the USA.  A phone was released in China last year, but sales have been minimal.  There is a vague promise (no date) to release a new product in China – but none in the USA.  And a potential tablet (competitor to iPad) is considered by end of 2010, but the company stresses no firm date.

Dell is moving far too slowly, and is far too uncommitted, to new businesses.  The company is listening to the analysts who have traditionally followed them – the large customers who have bought Microsoft products and are still doing so – and large vendors who want to maintain the status quo.  All of these folks are as locked-in as Dell.

Meanwhile Apple and Google keep selling thousands of units into these rapidly expanding new markets, growing share as well as sales at substantial profit.

This effort by Google is certainly good for its Chrome O/S.  Even if Dell moves slowly, having Chrome adopted into any part of the historically monopolistic Microsoft community is a good thing.  And the announcement itself shows the fragility of Microsoft in its historical market as growth slows and large distributors look to new solutions for "cloud computing" from new vendors.   So this is good for Google, and another dart into the wounds of Microsoft.

The market keeps shifting toward new technology and the vendors supporting it – making the re-invention gap bigger and bigger at Dell.  I don’t think Dell’s management is up to the market challenges.  They had a shot at real change, but by not giving the growth projects (then or now) real permission to do what it takes to succeed, including moving much faster to market, nor sufficient resources to meet market needs, Dell is hastening its own demise.  With its outdated, and now low-return, success formula firmly locked in, Dell looks likely to follow Wang, Lanier, Burroughs, DEC, Silicon Graphics and Sun Microsystems into the history books.