News

IDC: IT Budgets Down in 2008

IT execs are focusing on cutting costs rather than investing in technology this quarter, according to a report by research analysts at IDC.

Information technology executives are focusing on cutting costs rather than investing in technology this quarter, according to a report released today by research analysts at IDC.

IDC conducted in-depth interviews with 27 U.S.-based chief technology officers and other "senior" IT executives, and found "a significant shift towards cost reduction...as a response to the economic downturn," according to a released statement from Henry Morris, senior vice president of Software and Services Research at IDC.

According to a summary of the study, more than half of the executives interviewed said that their IT budgets had already been "negatively impacted" by the current economic downturn, with the rest "expecting a negative future impact." More than two-thirds also said that their funding is"moving back to being more centralized...in part for better control and efficiency."

To help control costs, IDC said that many of the executives interviewed are turning to technologies like virtualization and "application consolidation." According to the summary, 25 of the 27 IT executives interviewed are also focused on modernizing their company's legacy applications and architectures.

And while the executives interviewed said they are in need of Java, .NET, VoIP and SAP skills, as well as security and project management expertise, they are "very open to acquiring these skills externally."

A complete copy of the survey is available from IDC here.

About the Author

Becky Nagel serves as vice president of AI for 1105 Media specializing in developing media, events and training for companies around AI and generative AI technology. She also regularly writes and reports on AI news, and is the founding editor of PureAI.com. She's the author of "ChatGPT Prompt 101 Guide for Business Users" and other popular AI resources with a real-world business perspective. She regularly speaks, writes and develops content around AI, generative AI and other business tech. She has a background in Web technology and B2B enterprise technology journalism.

Featured

  • Closeup of the new Copilot keyboard key

    Microsoft Updates Copilot To Add Context-Sensitive Agents to Teams, SharePoint

    Microsoft has rolled out a new public preview for collaborative "always on" agents in Microsoft 365 Copilot, bringing enhanced, context-aware tools into Teams channels, meetings, SharePoint sites, Planner workstreams and Viva Engage communities.

  • Windows 365 Cloud Apps Now Available for Public Preview

    Microsoft announced this week that Windows 365 Cloud Apps are now available for public preview. This aims to allow IT administrators to stream individual Windows applications from the cloud, removing the need to assign Cloud PCs to every user.

  • Report: Security Initiatives Can't Keep Pace with Cloud, AI Boom

    The increasingly fast adoption of hybrid, multicloud, and AI systems is easily outgrowing existing security measures, according to a recent global survey by the Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) and exposure management firm Tenable.

  • World Map Image

    Microsoft Taps Nebius in $17B AI Infrastructure Deal To Alleviate Cloud Strain

    Microsoft has signed a five-year, $17.4 billion agreement with Amsterdam-based Nebius Group to expand its AI computing capabilities through third-party GPU infrastructure.

Most   Popular