Research firm Gartner Inc. expects the Indian government to increase its spending on information technology products and services by 5.2% to $6.88 billion this year as it steps up efforts to connect more people on Internet. Government comprises state and local governments and the Centre.
“Government spending on software will total $869 million in 2015, a 10.6% increase from 2014”.
IT services (which includes consulting, implementation, IT outsourcing and business process outsourcing) are expected to grow 10% in 2015 to reach $1.6 billion with the BPO sub-segment growing by 21%.
The analyst firm says the increase in spending is being driven by government initiatives, increased legislation and high-profile data breaches, with security testing, IT outsourcing and identity and access management key areas of interest for enterprises – and presenting the biggest growth opportunities for technology providers and resellers.
These are stand-alone applications that are not modules or extensions of horizontal applications, he added.
Telecom services will be a $1.6 billion market, with the mobile network services sub-segment recording fastest growth of 3 percent to $787 million.
On the other hand, worldwide IT spending across vertical industries is forecast to decrease by 3.5 per cent because of the rising USA dollar.
Gartner says price increases of as much as 20% which have already been seen in some countries – particularly in Europe – in the wake of the USA dollar appreciation, will see customers forgoing some spending for the next quarter or so. Technologies that help understand customers better and improve engagement through multi-channel experience in the retail sector may facilitate the buying process.
IT spending within the public sector looks set to take the largest dip of all industries during 2015, with Gartner forecasting a 5% drop, which is hardly surprising given the austerity drives nearly all governments across the globe seem to be subscribing to.
All sectors – apart from the government vertical – reported spending spikes last year but are projected to contract this year, though given the volatility of the currencies, another correction seems likely.
Within retail shops, creating IT infrastructure to accept various mobile payment systems and digital wallets will also be high-priority items in the second half of 2015, Gartner believes.
The Euro, Yen and Ruble were hit hardest by the strengthening of the U.S. currency, and the market slowdown was felt most acutely in China, Brazil and Russian Federation , said Gartner.