Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Applications
    • Applications

    Pros Boost Business

    By
    Mel Duvall
    -
    November 5, 2001
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      The computer services industry has been one of the few bright spots in the technology sector in 2001, powered along by long-term contracts and a growing trend toward outsourcing. But the industry itself has changed from a year ago.

      So-called Internet consultants, which focused on Web site development and business-to-consumer e-commerce projects, were hit hard by the dot-com meltdown. Many have shut down, and the ones that remain have had to completely refocus on less sexy practices like back-end integration, Enterprise Resource Planning and customer relationship management projects.

      The good news is spending by corporations on outside consultants, outsourcing firms and application service providers is expected to increase in the coming year, although perhaps not as fast as some earlier predictions.

      Gartner, for one, estimates that as much as 40 percent of all external IT spending went to services in 2000 — as opposed to purchases of hardware or software — and IT services will account for 45 percent of all end-user spending by 2004. In dollar figures, Gartner says worldwide spending is valued at $363 billion today, and should reach $569 billion by 2004.

      Business Services
      (download the PDF)

      “IT services providers have begun to focus more of their capabilities on leveraging technology to help generate new business, open new markets and deliver measurable business results,” says Jennifer Beck, vice president of Gartner Dataquests IT services practice. As revised business models emerge, Beck says, companies will rely more on external service providers to ensure they can gain the benefits of new technologies faster.

      In addition, the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks have created a boom in government spending, much of which will be directed to consultants and outside managed security service providers. Research firm IDC forecasts that the worldwide market for information security services will grow from $6.7 billion in 2000 to $21 billion by 2005.

      Some of the companies benefiting most from the spending, such as Accenture, Computer Sciences Corp., Deloitte Consulting, PricewaterhouseCoopers and security firms like Internet Security Systems, do not show up on our survey because their offerings are not sold over the Internet. However, other service providers such as application service providers Corio, Salesforce.com and USinternetworking do qualify because they provide services online. Corio, with e-commerce revenue of $27.8 million, privately held Salesforce.com with estimated Web sales of $15 million and Usinternetworking, with online revenue of $134.2 million, are just three service providers that made it onto this years list.

      Andrew Stern, CEO of USinternetworking, says its been a challenging year for ASPs, because while many companies are interested in moving toward hosted applications, theyre also concerned about the financial health of the providers. “The last thing a company wants to do is hand over mission-critical applications to an ASP that might go out of business,” he says.

      The ASP industry was buoyed last month by an IDC report that showed a study of 50 ASP implementations produced an average rate of return of 404 percent. “Its a message were starting to get across,” says Gary Steele, CEO of Portera Systems, which also made it onto this years list.

      Mel Duvall
      Contributing EditorMel Duvall is a veteran business and technology journalist, having written for a variety of daily newspapers and magazines for 17 years. Most recently he was the Business Commerce Editor for Interactive Week, and previously served as a senior business writer for The Financial Post.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Applications

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      IT Management

      Intuit’s Nhung Ho on AI for the...

      James Maguire - May 13, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nhung Ho, Vice President of AI at Intuit, about adoption of AI in the small and medium-sized business market, and how...
      Read more
      Cloud

      IGEL CEO Jed Ayres on Edge and...

      James Maguire - June 14, 2022 0
      I spoke with Jed Ayres, CEO of IGEL, about the endpoint sector, and an open source OS for the cloud; we also spoke about...
      Read more
      Applications

      Kyndryl’s Nicolas Sekkaki on Handling AI and...

      James Maguire - November 9, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nicolas Sekkaki, Group Practice Leader for Applications, Data and AI at Kyndryl, about how companies can boost both their AI and...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2022 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×