Acer admits that they do not know how to react to the imminent release of the Surface. Microsoft itself regards the tablet as a potential competitor to other Windows 8-based devices.
In an interview with the Financial Times, J.T. Wang, CEO of Acer, said that Microsoft should not release the Surface.
“We said (to Microsoft), change your mind! The release will have a significant negative impact on the entire ecosystem, and other brands will probably not take it in the best way,” JT stressed, noting that the devices “are not what Microsoft does well.”
However, the criticism of the company is not caused by the release of the device itself (Google released the Nexus 7, and nothing), but by the fact that it will take place at the same time as the release of the flagship tablet device Iconica by Acer itself based on Windows 8. Given Acer’s not the best position on the tablet market, this release, in theory, can really become painful for the company.
“If Microsoft enters the hardware market, what should we do? Should we still rely on Microsoft or look for an alternative to them? JT wonders.
Microsoft itself, according to documents filed by it with the US Securities Commission, even before the announcement of the Surface, knew that the release of the device could negatively affect its partners. But, apparently, the company does not consider it necessary to mitigate its consequences in any way.
Circumstances may develop in such a way that there will be no other tablets based on WP8 other than Surface. More precisely, those that will be will be in the shadow of the original Microsoft device.
Anyway, Gartner notes that “the struggle for the tablet market of every manufacturer, with the exception of Apple, will become more complicated with Surface.” But IDC believes that vendors will have to reckon with Microsoft, simply because they have no choice.
At the moment, Microsoft is already working on the second-generation Surface.