Economic uncertainty affects ICT
Although the present financial crisis will adversely affect capital investment in new ICT equipment and software, the uncertainties are also creating opportunities for certain ICT offerings, says CIO.
“In particular, ICT solutions that shift costs from a capital to variable component, focus on productivity increases and cost reduction, and support organisational restructuring and acquisitions are likely to see growing demand,” says Andrew Milroy, ICT director at Frost & Sullivan.
The findings are contained in ICT Opportunities in an Economic Downturn, the latest market insight from consulting company Frost & Sullivan. The research also identifies four areas of ICT that are likely to experience heightened demand: outsourcing services, managed and hosted services, information management tools, and services that support mergers and acquisitions.
Australian ICT market to grow
An IDC report predicts investment by the Australian banking, financial services and insurance markets in ICT will grow to over A$10 billion by 2012, states Linux World.
According to the IDC, Australian financial institutions rely heavily on their ICT suppliers to provide products and solutions that enable them to operate successfully.
"The economic slowdown has made IT investment committees more discerning of IT investments and more focused on improved performance benchmarking and project governance," says Melissa Martin, senior analyst for vertical markets at IDC.
Swisscom adopts ICT solution
CSS, a provider of remote infrastructure equipment management, revealed that Swisscom has deployed its ComView IPs to centrally manage business customers' infrastructure equipment, says Market Watch.
ComView IPs' integrated remote management device enables Swisscom to deploy a single, secure remote management solution for business customers.
"Before ComView IPs, multiple workstations had been used to establish remote management and connection with no central data administration or complete control over activities," explains Werner Keller, head of competence centre remote ICT management for Swisscom. "We're confident the system will help us to achieve additional cost savings and customer satisfaction down the road."