Context: Apple rivals 'should worry' as it eyes B2B glory

Declining consumer iPad sales to prompt enterprise push, according to reports

Apple rivals such as Dell and HP "should be worried" as the iPhone maker looks to beef up its presence in the enterprise space, according to analyst Context.

Sources told Reuters this morning that Apple is launching its most aggressive enterprise campaign yet in order to offset other areas of its business - such as its iPad unit - which are struggling to maintain strong levels of growth. In Q4, iPad sales slumped 14 per cent annually.

The sources said Apple has hired a dedicated sales force to talk to potential enterprise clients and pointed to its recent tie-up with IBM to create enterprise apps together as evidence of its commitment to the market.

Apple has a reputation for not being particularly channel friendly, but a push into the enterprise space could change that, according to analyst Context's chief executive Jeremy Davies (pictured).

"There has always been an Apple channel presence - it has been specialised but there has always been a nucleus which can expand and grow," he said. "I don't think it is like Dell going to the channel; they used to say ‘channel is dead' until they realised it wasn't and they needed it and did a 360° turn and are now doing really well from it.

"Apple have never said that and have always been willing to work with [resellers], it is just [that] their brand was not really very enterprise or SMB focused. But they never said no to channel and I think they will be welcome - it is another option to put out there to customers."

Davies added that Apple rivals should take notice of its enterprise intentions.

"There is a long way for them to go, but if they approach [the enterprise] in the same way they have done things in the past, some of the players in the enterprise space should be worried," he said, pointing to HP and Dell - which already have a strong devices presence in the channel - as potential targets for Apple.

"It makes a lot of sense [to look at the enterprise] and it has been a long time coming," he said.

"The market has got a lot more crowded in the consumer space and the pressure is on, but the IBM tie-up shows they are serious about making the move into the enterprise space and they have a very good story to tell based on their heritage and the "Apple way".

"They've been given a huge leg-up by corporations and enterprises themselves... who have decided to [buy Apple] themselves because they have seen the potential."