Lenovo made its reputation in China as a the provider of choice for a wealth of business accounts. For much of its history, it focused on its business machines, which made its purchase of IBM (International Business Machines) in 2005 seem highly logical.
But as Lenovo and IBM worked to merge their two companies, struggling to overcome the challenges of combining two unique corporate cultures, their competitors noticed that the game was changing. Low cost producers such as Acer were starting to dominate the PC market with inexpensive options for personal users, who then took some of their preferences to the office. More recently, Lenovo fell a bit behind the curve in the emergence of smartphones and tablets.
Determined not to be caught unaware again, Lenovo has initiated a new round of business acquisitions, along with expansions in various geographic markets. For example, the economic slowdown in China is shrinking Lenovo’s home market, so it recently purchased a Brazilian electronics group that should further its footing in Brazil. In other countries where personal computer usage is really starting to take off, such as Indonesia, Argentina, and Mexico, Lenovo is refocusing its efforts to ensure it is among the first movers.
Even as it diversifies its geographic reach, Lenovo also is expanding its product lines. It has introduced a tablet, and its smartphones already have earned a 13.1 percent market shar
e in China. It also continues to innovate its smart TV, determined to offer consumers a means to surf the Web from their television screens.
In the meantime, Lenovo’s public announcements have little to say about its business arm.
Source: Yun-Hee Kim, “Lenovo Group Sets Its Sights Beyond PCs,” The New York Times, September 9, 2012.
Grewal Levy Marketing News 
Not what I was looking for but nice anyway! Nice one!
I think it is essential for Lenovo to take these steps to extend past PCs because in today’s global markets, tech companies cannot thrive on just the sale of computers. Customers want access to the Internet at all times so being a player in the market for smartphones and TVs with Internet capabilities is essential in order to remain a viable company against competitors like Apple. However, Lenovo may have also fallen behind its competitors again and their lack of quick innovation may really hurt the company if it continues to happen. Trailing behind in tech innovations in today’s society can really hurt a company and they must work on bringing their products to various regions as quick as their competitors in order to remain a global leader in the sales of computers and other tech products.
I believe that by acquiring so many different companies around the world, Lenovo is definitely diversifying so that an economic downturn in one country does not hurt them too much overall. The fact that they supply the college laptops is a very safe way for them to also gain exposure and market share.
I find it fascinating that Lenovo is watching what its competitors are doing in the market and after realizing that they fell behind in the smartphone and tablet markets, they are working to continue to compete and gain market share. They noticed that Acer was gaining market share with their lower prices and thus moved to compete with them by lowering their prices. Also, Lenovo was watching the economic environment in China and realized that in order to remain competitive in the market and not lose market share they would have to move to another area where they could grow which they did successfully by acquiring an electronics company in Brazil. I also think it is interesting that Lenovo is developing its product lines of a tablet and smart TV so that it can compete in a diverse area of products. I think what Lenovo is doing is good and should be reflected in their public announcements to let consumers and investors know.