IDC offers top 10 IT predictions for 2002

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. -- An increase in demand for wireless Internet access is among the top 10 predictions for the global IT market for 2002, the global IT market intelligence firm IDC said this week.

IDC predicts that the IT market rebound will begin by mid-2002, perhaps sooner. "Prior to September 11, we were expecting the rebound to begin in 2001," said John Gantz, IDC's chief research officer, "but terrorism's impact on the global economy took a commensurate toll on the IT market."

IDC forecasts that in 2002 IT spending will increase 4-6% in the United States, 6-7% in Western Europe and 10-12% in Asia/Pacific. "The good news," Gantz said, "is that the economic assumptions behind our IT forecast are holding up. In fact they may be conservative. If that's the case, the IT recovery could come sooner and be stronger than we currently predicted."

China's entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO) will help ensure its 25% IT spending growth continues for years. By 2010 it will be the third largest IT market in the world.

The remaining IDC Top 10 predictions for 2002 are:

▪ Businesses will feel a crunch in 2002 as users and workers with wireless and mobile Internet access create demand for enterprise support that's not yet in place.

▪ The "Bin Laden Effect," as Gantz calls it, will drive enterprises to rethink their specs for business continuity -- creating a need to reset IT security plans in 2002.

▪ With Microsoft pushing Passport to XP users and competitors reacting, digital identity services will become real - even if single-sign-on to the Web will remain a consumer's pipe dream.

▪ Streaming media will be hot as new standards come online and new services and market needs -- some in reaction to September 11 -- come into play.

▪ The concept of "web services" will hit its hype peak in 2002 -- long before any critical mass of products or services in the market is reached.

▪ Linux will have a "breakout year." Last year there were a number of ways the market could have gone -- including into the tank. Now it seems clear that Linux has become a viable alternative for enterprise use.

▪ Although the market for server blades won't be a big money maker in 2002, the new architecture will disrupt the entry server and appliance server markets -- yet another disturbance in a server market already undergoing multiple transitions.

▪ 75 million WinXP licenses will ship in 2002, but XP won't have the clout that Windows 95 did in driving hardware sales or generating first-time users.

IDC is a foremost global market intelligence and advisory firm helping clients gain insight into technology and ebusiness trends to develop sound business strategies. Using a combination of rigorous primary research, in-depth analysis, and client interaction, IDC forecasts worldwide markets and trends to deliver dependable service and client advice. More than 700 analysts in 43 countries provide global research with local content. IDC's customers comprise the world's leading IT suppliers, IT organizations, ebusiness companies, and the financial community. 

IDC is a division of IDG, a leading IT media, research and exposition company.