CA partners less confident but IT budgets likely to rise

Partners of CA Technologies (NASDAQ:CA) are predicting a better 2011, with almost a half saying that the economy is set to improve.
However, compared the previous CA Technologies Channel Index, confidence levels have actually dropped. In 2010, 66 percent of surveyed partners predicted the economy would improve compared to just 48 percent this year.
Cloud was one of the big areas of growth highlighted by the survey of nearly a thousand partners across Europe. In the UK, 72 percent of partners expect a significant rise in cloud-related IT spend. As a result, demand for corresponding management tools and services will also increase, with 69 percent of partners expecting increased investment in virtualisation management.
Commenting on the findings, Chris Gabriel, marketing director at Logicalis UK, says: “Cloud has now matured as a viable strategic solution for customers, whether that's the increasing adoption of private cloud or the use of hosted cloud services. We are moving beyond the hype, primarily because customers see real solutions built on products from vendor partners they trust.”
42 percent of respondents say their customers are already benefitting from the scalability offered by cloud, while partners say that customers using cloud are saving an average of 10.4 percent from their annual IT budgets. CA estimates that when applied across the whole of Europe, this equates to a potential saving of €77bn in 2011.
The Channel Index also highlights that different industries are adopting cloud at different speeds. IT and telecoms companies are perceived as early adopters with 56 percent, followed by the media and internet sector at 47 percent. Partners identified the retail sector as sluggish with only 23 percent while manufacturing showed the least inclination to move to cloud computing with only 16 percent adoption.
“The transition to cloud is not a one size fits all approach,” explains David Griffiths, VP partners, alliances and MSPs in Europe for CA Technologies. “For example, many telcos are adding cloud services to their portfolio as it is a natural expansion of their existing services. The key for partners is to develop tailored services that address the specific vertical market. CA Technologies is focused on assisting in the transition to cloud across all different industries.”
A rise in IT spending has also been predicted by analyst firm Gartner who recently raised its forecast from a 3.5 percent to 5.1 percent increase in 2011.