Taipei - Worldwide notebook personal computer (PC) shipment in 2009 is forecasted to reach 138 million units, growing about 11.3 per cent compared to the expected shipment volume of 124 million units in 2008, a Taiwan research agency said Tuesday.

Worldwide netbook PC shipment volume in 2009 is forecasted to reach 22.64 million units, growing 102 per cent compared to the expected volume of 11.21 million units in
2008, the Market Information Centre (MIC) under the Institute of Information Industry, said in a news release.

The combined shipment volume of notebook PCs and netbook PCs is expected to grow 18.8 per cent in 2009 compared to 2008, making these two product types the main growth driver of the global PC industry.

Notebook PCs are defined as products with display sizes of 10.4 inches and larger. Netbook PCs are defined as products with display sizes between 7 and 10.2 inches.

MIC industry analyst Nicole Huang said: "The global notebook PC industry is about to enter maturity. This development towards maturity will be further pushed by the weakness of the overall economy, the fact that the market is gradually becoming saturated and the intense price competition."

"Although netbook PC shipment will see significant growth rates, this product type is only in the early stages of development, and its ability to boost overall industry growth is still limited," the news release quoted Huang as saying.

In 2009, the distinction between notebook PCs and netbook PCs will become increasingly blurred, MIC said.

Lightweight and convenient features, multimedia functions and price will become key factors in consumer market purchases. The focus in future notebook PC product development will be on personalized features, lightweight aesthetics and strong entertainment multimedia functions, MIC noted. (dpa)