Kaspersky aims for No. 3 position
IT World Canda, by Paolo Del Nibletto
I know how the headline sounds. It tells me that Kaspersky Lab, based in Moscow, isn’t interested in winning. Since the Green Bay Packers are in this weekend’s NFL Super Bowl I have to bring up their great coach Vince Lombardi’s message: "Winning isn't everything, but it's the only thing. In our business, there is no second place. Either you're first or you're last."
I remember interviewing Paul Curlander, CEO of Lexmark a few years ago, who told me that being No. 2 to HP is great for the company. That comment never really sat well with me and if you look at Lexmark struggles today with not just HP, but also Ricoh, Brother and others distancing themselves from the Lexington, Kentucky-based printer manufacturer (in Canada) it sends the wrong message to your channel partners.
I didn’t get the same feeling about Kaspersky’s goal to become the No. 3 player. Eugene Buyakin, the COO of the Internet security developer said that to describe the company’s past growth. He said that in 2008 Kaspersky was 4 per cent of the market. In 2009 they got 5.8 per cent of the market. Buyakin estimates that in 2010 Kaspersky will be 7.5 per cent of the market and he is confident that the company can reach No. 3 status and that’s the goal.
