This generation’s ‘New Coke’

Rarely has a product fallen so far, so fast, as the HP TouchPad. Last Thursday the company said they were discontinuing the product barely a month after pulling out all the stops to introduce it.

This was interesting to me not because I own a TouchPad, but because the company I work for as my outside job was responsible for setting up TouchPad displays in a number of stores, including Staples, Office Max, and Office Depot among others. So HP’s decision cut a few hours from my schedule as I would audit the displays to verify if units were working properly as part of my regular chores. (Fortunately, I still get to check all the other HP products there.)

Yet what may have been most stunning is the speed in which HP pulled the plug. Apparently the units weren’t exactly flying off the shelves at Best Buy and the retailer’s desire to return unsold units to HP prompted the decision.

I will cheerfully admit I am not a technical sort of person when it comes to electronics. As long as I could get the units to run a demo loop in my rounds I was a happy guy, and that was the extent I played with the TouchPads. (One of my stores did have a balky unit, though. Maybe they weren’t the only one.) I leave computer repair to the experts, which is why I’m typing this post on my PC keyboard – my laptop is in capable hands as it gets the failing hard drive replaced and memory added.

For those of you who aren’t a certain age as I am, the reference at the top was to the drink Coca-Cola introduced in the mid-1980’s as a replacement for the original formula of Coca-Cola. In the annals of corporate decisions, that was the epic fail of my generation, much as the Edsel was the punchline of my parents’ peers.

But look at the timelines involved. The Edsel lasted about three years before Ford decided enough was enough, while New Coke went about three months before Coca-Cola realized they made a horrible marketing mistake and brought back the original formula. This episode lasted barely a month – heck, a poorly received television series sometimes gets a longer run than that.

Yet TouchPads aren’t unpopular when sold at $99. That was a way to eliminate the backstock to be sure, although one can be sure that HP was losing a ton on each unit. (Apparently they’re refunding the price difference to certain buyers as well so more money lost.)

It’s not unusual for new businesses to fail, but when an established company makes a blunder this large there are lessons to be learned for another generation. The question is whether HP can recover from this gaffe, as rumors are swirling that they may leave the PC business or otherwise downsize operations. The HP TouchPad tagline “Everybody On” apparently was a pipe dream, but how much long-term prospects are injured by the failure remains to be seen.

Author: Michael

It's me from my laptop computer.