The new approach may have its broadest impact on how HP prices the application support services offered by its Electronic Data Systems unit. last August, said that users now will be able to specify different application service levels based on the importance of individual apps.

For instance, a company could set high service levels for that require a rapid support response, such as order processing, while others that aren't as central to business operations could be designated for lower levels of service - with HP's pricing varying accordingly.

The change isn't a price cut, according to HP officials. But the variable pricing could reduce overall application support costs by as much as 40% for customers, said Jeff Womack, vice president of product marketing at EDS.

Womack said EDS is also "unbundling" its IT infrastructure services, which include support of servers and storage devices, so they can be aimed at smaller companies - for instance, businesses with as few as 100 servers to support. HP thinks the new approach will enable EDS to go after a broader customer base, beyond the that it has focused on until now.

John Madden, an analyst at consulting firm's Ovum's office in Boston, said that HP is trying to be proactive in response to the . "If you have customers that are hurting financially," Madden said, "do you pound them over and over again with the same terms?"