BUNCH

The BUNCH was the nickname for the group of mainframe computer competitors of IBM in the 1970s. The name is derived from the names of the five companies: Burroughs, UNIVAC, NCR, Control Data Corporation (CDC), and Honeywell. These companies were grouped together because the market share of IBM was much higher than all of its competitors put together.^[1]^[2]

During the 1960s, IBM and these five computer manufacturers, along with RCA and General Electric, had been known as "IBM and the Seven Dwarfs". The description of IBM's competitors changed after GE's 1970 sale of its computer business to Honeywell and RCA's 1971 sale of its computer business to Sperry (who owned UNIVAC), leaving only five "dwarves". The companies' initials thus lent themselves to a new acronym, BUNCH.^[3] International Data Corporation estimated in 1984 that BUNCH would receive less than $2 billion of an estimated $11.4 billion in mainframe computer sales that year, with IBM receiving most of the remainder. IBM so dominated the mainframe market that observers expected the BUNCH to merge or exit the industry.^[4] BUNCH followed IBM into the microcomputer market with their own PC compatibles.^[5] but unlike that company did not quickly adjust to retail sales of smaller computers.^[4]

Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), at one point the second largest in the industry, was joined to BUNCH as DeBUNCH.^[6]

^ Jones, Douglas (1997). "University of Iowa Department of Computer Science, 22C:18, Lecture 28, Summer 1997". Archived from the original on 21 October 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-15.
^ Hamm, Steve (2004-06-14). "Thomas J. Watson Jr.: Junior Achievement". BusinessWeek. Archived from the original on 13 October 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-15.
^ Greenwald, John; van Voorst, Bruce (1983-07-11). "The Colossus That Works". Time. Archived from the original on May 14, 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-09.
^ ^a ^b Sanger, David E. (1984-02-05). "Bailing Out of the Mainframe Industry". The New York Times. p. Section 3, Page 1. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-03-02.
^ Bartimo, Jim (1984-11-05). "Mainframe Bunch Goes Micro". InfoWorld. pp. 47–50. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
^ Poduska, John William Sr. (9 October 2002). "Oral History of John William (Bill) Poduska Sr" (PDF). Computer History Museum. Retrieved 20 December 2022.

[1] Jones, Douglas (1997). "University of Iowa Department of Computer Science, 22C:18, Lecture 28, Summer 1997". Archived from the original on 21 October 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-15.

[2] Hamm, Steve (2004-06-14). "Thomas J. Watson Jr.: Junior Achievement". BusinessWeek. Archived from the original on 13 October 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-15.

[3] Greenwald, John; van Voorst, Bruce (1983-07-11). "The Colossus That Works". Time. Archived from the original on May 14, 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-09.

[sanger19840205-4] Sanger, David E. (1984-02-05). "Bailing Out of the Mainframe Industry". The New York Times. p. Section 3, Page 1. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-03-02.

[bartimobunch19841105-5] Bartimo, Jim (1984-11-05). "Mainframe Bunch Goes Micro". InfoWorld. pp. 47–50. Retrieved 6 January 2015.

[6] Poduska, John William Sr. (9 October 2002). "Oral History of John William (Bill) Poduska Sr" (PDF). Computer History Museum. Retrieved 20 December 2022.

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