German newspaper publisher Axel Springer is migrating to the Mac platform and says it will replace all of its PCs with both Mac notebooks and desktops over the next five years, becoming Apple's second largest corporate client. The company, which already uses Macs for all of its layout work, cited the user-friendly Mac operating system, ease-of-use, maintenance costs, and Apple's industrial design the main reason for the migration: "The Apple computers are easier to operate than all the others," CEO Mathias Döpfner said in a YouTube video (in German). Axel-Springer will be Apple's largest corporate client in Europe and second largest -- only behind Google -- in the world, according (German link) to the German magazine Heise Online.

The switch will involve nearly 12,000 PCs, according to another report.

The newspaper publisher will use the entire range of Apple products, including its iMac, Mac mini, and Mac Pro desktop as well as its MacBook, MacBook Pro, and ultra-portable MacBook Air for its mobile needs; the company, however, said it will run Mac OS X, Windows XP, or Windows Vista, depending on workers' needs. The iPhone will also be supported, the report says.

Axel Springer, which employs nearly 10,000, had sales of €2.5 billion in 2007, and has offices in 32 countries, including Poland, Hungary, Russia, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Spain and France.