CA resellers forecast upturn in fortunes
CA (NASDAQ:CA) resellers in the UK and Ireland believe the worst of the recession is past and are looking forward to an upturn in 2010.
According to the 2010 CA Channel Index which was released today, 81 percent of respondents predict that the economic outlook will improve this year, compared with just nine percent who think it will deteriorate. 34 percent of partners also predict an increase in IT budgets in 2010; telling a more positive story than last year when 74 percent of budgets were lower than a year before.
The annual CA Channel Index is conducted online by CA’s partners. It reveals the largest opportunity perceived by resellers for growth in 2010 is virtualisation, with 70 percent of partners anticipating an increase in spending on this technology. This represents significant growth on 2009 where 51 percent predicted a rise. Resellers have identified cloud computing as the second hottest area for IT spending with 56 percent of partners predicting an increase this year (up from 44 percent in 2009).
Says José Carvalho, SVP, EMEA channel sales, CA: “When we reflect on the feedback from last year’s Index it is clear that it was a tough period for some of our partners. This year there is a marked difference - with the Index showing that our partners across EMEA are now positive about the outlook for the upcoming year. They have also pinpointed virtualisation and cloud computing as customer spending hotspots for 2010. CA is already working with its partners to guide their customers through the adoption of virtualisation technology and their journey towards cloud computing.”
Other areas of IT spending growth in 2010 are expected to be green IT (with 43 percent predicting an increase) and recovery management (encompassing data protection, business continuity and disaster recovery – where 40 percent predict an increase). The 2010 CA Channel Index shows that the top two spending focus areas this year will remain the same as last year, but green IT and recovery management are new areas of focus for partners.
