Tesco takes on software giants - ZDNet UK News

Richard Thurston — 2 October 2006
Tesco is to start selling cut-price software, in a move that could spark a price war among the major vendors.

 

The supermarket chain is aiming to steal market share from the likes of Microsoft and Symantec. It will offer six products all costing under £20, cutting a substantial discount compared with rival products.

There’s a press release from Formjet, the software distributor, here and a description of the Ability office product here. Note the power of bulk buying — Ability quotes a higher price than Tesco does. Tesco’s download site will be in operation soon.

I go along to some extent with the opinion, expressed further down the page, that either Tesco’s brand strength and marketing ability can make a dent in this market or it has not properly understood the market it is entering. I slightly favour the former.

This news ties in with the recent blog item from Bob Tarzey at QuoCirca, on office software for schoolchildren. His “self-respecting teenager with €100 to blow” might be prepared to spend £20 of it on Tesco’s offering.