By Sally Watson, 4 April 2000 00:25
NEWS Hewlett-Packard (HP) is today launching an initiative aimed at the emerging dot-com sector. The HP Garage Program claims to offer the complete package for new Web companies - technology, marketing and financial support. Companies signing up to the scheme are offered a range of platforms and technologies, including HP-UX, Linux and NT. Companies are able to defer payment on 'business essentials' for up to six months. HP is aiming the programme at start-ups, existing Web companies and application service providers (ASPs). The vendor is also establishing a venture capital fund, which will provide up to $2m per company for the best of its Garage Program customers. Gordon Lovell-Read, head of new ventures at HP UK, said the company had been working closely with dot-coms in consulting and finance for the last year, but this is the first time its services have been brought together under one roof. Lovell-Read claimed: "This is a very lucrative market for us. We're seeing demand go through the roof. If you're starting a business you want to get there early and guarantee the outcome. It's a risky business, but HP has always been about quality and process." Companies already signed up to the scheme include Screamingmedia.com, Mycontracts.com and Mirror Image Internet. Chris Charrington, analyst at Frost & Sullivan, said the scheme would benefit small companies. "It's got to be a good idea, there are always problems with funding and the like," he said. But the benefits for HP are less clear, he added: "It's an attempt by HP to provide a one-stop-shop, but I don't see how it fits into their overall strategy, perhaps they're going back to their roots."
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