Compaq Europe is not going direct as fast as the US but is maintaining it still has the option to so do. That follows an announcement in the US earlier this morning, as revealed here on Monday, that Compaq will go head-to-head against Gateway and Dell.

Said David Petts, head of channels at Compaq UK: "It's not true we're going direct". He said the US situation was different from that in Europe. But Petts said that a similar model could be adopted in the UK, depending on the situation. Compaq UK will not go direct immediately, but could adopt the US model in the first half of next year, said Petts.

If it happens here, it will be a different situation and model. "It will be open to any reseller and to all channels," said Petts. A source added: "The US channel is different from the UK. But we don't rule out the possiblity of going direct." Traditionally, Compaq Europe is six months behind Compaq US. ®