By AARON BOYD
Corel Corp. is cutting prices of its award winning WordPerfect line of products by up to half in an attempt to boost sales.
According to Corel's news release regarding the decision, Corel expects the price cut will enable the Toronto based company to compete vigorously in the North American software market.
'We've observed the emergence of the sub $1,000 PC market and have recognized a related trend towards declining software prices,' said Don Sylvester, senior vice president of Sales at Corel Corp. 'We are choosing to lead the way by offering customers excellent products at compelling prices.'
Andre Peterson, former vice president of Marketing for WordPerfect for eleven years, said he believes Corel's strategy to be a reaction to Microsoft's increasing dominance of the word processing market.
'It's getting to be a tougher and tougher market,' Peterson said. 'Almost all of the new computers that are coming out are pre-loaded with Microsoft software.'
Starting March 14, Corel will sell its most recent upgrade version of Corel WordPerfect Suite 8 for $89 suggested retail, compared to the $179 price previous to the cut. The professional version of the suite will sell for $179 instead of the previous $249 price.
According to the Associated Press, Corel hopes the price cut will help the company return to profitability after reporting a $67 million loss in its latest financial quarter.
Michael DeLavergne, an analyst with Dlouhy Investments in Montreal, said he is skeptical of Corel's ability to report a profit this year, despite the price-cut.
'I don't see much very positive about the company's financial future,' he said. 'They have many challenges ahead of them.'
Peterson said Corel is doing the only thing it can do to remain competitive in today's market.
'They're doing something they have to do,' Peterson said. 'If they can get the price low enough then they can hold on to the customers they have.'
'Corel is the Taco Bell of the word processing industry,' said Emily Voisin, sales representative at the BYU Bookstore.
Voisin said the price cuts will not affect academic prices, which retail far below even the new prices at $49 and $119 for the suite and professional versions respectively.
The academic versions of the WordPerfect line compete heavily with Microsoft's Word and Office 97 products.
'I think a lot of students come to BYU with a preference for Word,' Voisin said. 'But then the price is a deciding factor for most students, and WordPerfect sells like crazy.'