Overseas Manufacturers Acquire Vulnerable U.S. Brands For Distribution

Acer, the struggling Taiwanese manufacturer of PCs and other computer products, has entered the brand buying spree that's starting to sweep across North America. The company annouced plans to acquire two big western computer brands - Gateway and Packard Bell.

While many strategic and tactical reasons are given for the acquisition, the most striking - and important - is the comment Acer's Chairman J.T. Wang made on a recent conference call: "...the Gateway brand is a very well-recognized brand in the U.S., and we want to continue to leverage on the brand in the U.S. and to expand it outside the U.S..."

Richard Black, a spokesman for Acer America, also reinforced the distribution rationale for the acquisition when he said the company hoped to capitalize on greater access to American retailers; Acer began selling at Best Buy only this year and in Circuit City in 2006, he said.