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Forrester: IT Professionals In Emerging Asia Region Are The Most Optimistic About 2009 IT Budget Growth In New Survey

Business Data Services Survey Examines Enterprise IT Trends In Asia Pacific, Latin America, Middle East, And Africa

Cambridge, Mass., July 7, 2009 . . . IT professionals in the Emerging Asian countries of China, India, and Vietnam are the most optimistic about IT budgets this year, with 19 percent of respondents expecting to increase their tech spending in 2009, followed by Latin American IT professionals at 12 percent, according to a new survey by Forrester Research, Inc. (Nasdaq: FORR). The survey of more than 1,400 IT executives and technology decision-makers located in Asia Pacific, Latin America, Middle East, and Africa is Forrester's inaugural study of businesses' technology adoption plans and priorities across all of these regions. The study Enterprise Global Technology Adoption Survey, Asia Pacific, Latin America, Middle East, And Africa, Q1 2009 is part of Forrester's Business Data Services (BDS) series, which provides an extensive data set for B2B Market Research professionals' go-to-market strategy assessments.

IT budget plans differ significantly across industries in Emerging Asia, with the largest increases being in the public sector (34 percent) and utilities and telecoms (24 percent) and the smallest increase in the manufacturing sector (9 percent). Top-line overviews of full survey responses are available to Forrester RoleView™ clients in the report "The State Of Global Business Technology Adoption: 2009." Subscribers to Forrester's Business Data Services receive unlimited data support, including custom segmentation from a dedicated data advisor. Other key highlights of the survey include:

  • Asia Pacific and MEA/Russia are the current bright spots for SaaS. Of the firms surveyed, 18 percent in Asia Pacific and 14 percent in the Middle East/Africa/Russia have implemented or are implementing software-as-a-service (SaaS) projects. Interest in considering or piloting SaaS projects is highest in the Emerging Asia region.
  • Cloud computing activity is low globally. While Latin America has the highest percentage of firms (14 percent) that have already implemented cloud computing or pay-per-use hosting of virtual servers, 40 percent of firms in the region are not interested, and an additional 23 percent of firms are not familiar with the technology or don't know if they are interested. Other regions reported similar results; Asia Pacific took the top spot, with 52 percent of firms not interested.
  • Latin America is a hotbed of activity around unified communications. Overall, 88 percent of Latin American firms responded that they have an existing implementation or interest in unified communications.
  • Product localization preferences are mixed. The strongest preferences for IT products in local languages are in Latin America (52 percent) and Emerging Asia (39 percent). However, respondents were split in Emerging Asia, with a high percentage (41 percentage) also reporting a strong preference for products in English.

"When expanding into new geographic markets, it's critical that technology vendors adapt their approach to local conditions and requirements and not presume global or even regional uniformity among businesses," said Jennifer Bélissent, Ph.D., senior analyst for Forrester. "For example, although this survey shows that interest in cloud computing is very low in most emerging markets, that suggests more education on the technology and its benefits are needed in order to spur demand. Tech vendors need to research their target markets carefully and as specifically as possible in order to appropriately adapt marketing and sales strategies to meet customer pain points."

"The State Of Global Business Technology Adoption: 2009" report is currently available to Forrester RoleView clients and can be purchased directly at www.forrester.com/go?docid=53331. A complimentary Webinar about the new data is also available for download at www.forrester.com/bdswebinar.

More information about Forrester's Business Data Services and custom data analyses for B2B Market Research professionals is available at www.forrester.com/Products/MarketResearch/Business.

About Forrester Research

Forrester Research, Inc. (Nasdaq: FORR) is an independent research company that provides pragmatic and forward-thinking advice to global leaders in business and technology. Forrester works with professionals in 19 key roles at major companies providing proprietary research, consumer insight, consulting, events, and peer-to-peer executive programs. For more than 25 years, Forrester has been making IT, marketing, and technology industry leaders successful every day. For more information, visit www.forrester.com.

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Forrester Research, Inc.
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