http://www.answers.com/topic/original-equipment-manufacturer...
Σύμφωνα με την Investopedia:

1. The original definition: a company whose products are used as components in another company's product. The OEM will generally work closely with the company that sells the finished product (often called a "value-added reseller" or VAR) and customize the designs based on the VAR's needs.

2. The more recent definition: a company that buys a product and incorporates or re-brands it into a new product under its own name.

Investopedia Says: There isn't a typo here; the two definitions do contradict each other. This term has become very confusing since it now can be used in both contexts. OEM sometimes means the company that sells the component to the the VAR, and other times it refers to the VAR who is acquiring a product from an OEM. The reason for this is that "OEM" (the abbreviation) is sometimes used as a verb instead of a noun. For example, a manufacturer might say that it is going to OEM a new product, meaning it is going to produce a new product based on components bought from an OEM.

The term is most often used in the computer industry, where products such as Windows will be referred to as OEM. A company like Dell Computers will incorporate the Windows operating software into its computers and sell the computers to its customers with the Windows product installed.

Σύμφωνα με την Wikipedia:

An original equipment manufacturer (frequently abbreviated OEM) is a company that builds products or components that are used in products sold by another company (often called a value-added reseller, or VAR). An OEM will typically build to order based on designs of the VAR. For example, a hard drive in a computer system may be manufactured by a corporation separate from the company that markets and sells the computer, or a loudspeaker in a stereo system made by a company that specializes in audio manufacturing.

In some usages, a VAR is sometimes called an OEM, despite this being a complete reversal of the literal meaning of both terms. This misunderstanding arises from use of the term OEM as a verb. For example, a VAR might say that they are going to OEM a new product, meaning they are going to offer a new product based on components from an OEM.


Στα ελληνικά δεν είναι σωστό να μιλάμε για "πρωτότυπο", διότι πρόκειται για "αρχικό" κατασκευαστή (υπάρχει ακόμα και η απόδοση "κατασκευαστής αρχικού εξοπλισμού"). Πιστεύω ότι δεν χρειάζεται να πέσουμε στην παγίδα της αγγλικής δισημίας και να χρησιμοποιούμε τον ένα ή τον άλλο όρο (αρχικός κατασκευαστής ή μεταπωλητής προστιθέμενης αξίας) ανάλογα με τον πραγματικό ρόλο της εταιρείας.

Για παράδειγμα, οι ελληνικές εταιρείες υπολογιστών είναι όλες VAR, δηλ. μεταπωλητές προστιθέμενης αξίας.

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