Analytics, Mobility To Shape Biz Strategies Across Southeast Asia In 2012

Total IT spending –comprising of hardware, IT services and packaged software—in Southeast Asia is forecasted to reach US$48.1 billion in 2012, representing a 13 percent year-on-year (YoY) growth. As the IT market in Southeast Asia gradually matures, social and business analytics, and enterprise mobility are two areas that will have significant influence among enterprises in increasing market reach and business efficiency. The adoption of cloud computing in the sub-region is also likely to gain greater momentum in 2012 as non-conventional players are entering the market and offering cloud services to the industry.

“Results from a recent Asia Pacific CIO survey revealed that majority of CIOs will raise their ICT budget for the upcoming year in the areas of on-demand services, mobility and social media tools. However, the focus on reducing overall cost structure within the organisation remains unwavering,” says Alan Tong, Research Director at IDC Asia/Pacific.

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Drawing from the latest IDC research and internal brainstorming sessions amongst IDC’s regional and country analysts, the following are the top 10 key predictions that IDC believes will have the biggest commercial impact on the ICT industry in Southeast Asia in 2012.

Sluggish Growth In Europe And U.S. To Impact IT Spending In The Region

IDC believes that the uncertainties in the Eurozone debt crisis and the tumultuous U.S. economy will have a significant bearing on IT spending in Southeast Asia in 2012. Although the severe flooding in Thailand late last year had an immense impact on the livelihood of the locals, it is expected to cause minimal disruption on the country’s IT spending in 2012. The total IT spending for Southeast Asia is estimated* at US$42.3 billion in 2011 and is forecasted to reach US$48.1 billion in 2012, representing a 13 percent YoY growth. Indonesia is expected to be the top IT spender in Southeast Asia in 2012 and is forecasted to continue on its strong growth reaching US$12.9 billion in 2012, representing an 18.8 percent growth.

Singapore And Thailand To Lead In Mobile Data Consumption

IDC is expecting a slowdown in the growth of telecommunication services spending in Southeast Asia in 2012. The total expenditure for major Southeast Asia markets is forecasted to hit US$49.8 billion in 2012. This translates to a YoY growth of 5 percent. Mobile data will lead the pack with a predicted 11 percent growth. Singapore and Thailand are forecasted to experience the biggest increase in mobile data usage with 16.9 percent and 15.5 percent YoY growth. Across Southeast Asia, fixed data and wireless voice are expected to perform strongly at 9.9 percent and 2.1 percent respectively. On the other hand, IDC expects fixed-line voice to decline by 2.6 percent.

Cloud Will Increase Process Automation In Enterprises

Cloud computing, especially public cloud services, will remain a crucial element for markets like Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand. IDC’s understanding is that there will be dramatic movements for cloud computing in these countries in 2012, with more focus placed on bringing this platform to SMBs and enterprises in key verticals. As such, IDC predicts more vertical-specific applications to be introduced in the near future, and the focus will be on addressing key pain-points of the cloud for specific verticals.

Telecommunication Services Providers Ramping Their Services With App Aggregator

Telecommunication services providers are creating app aggregator and building their own “app stores” through which they can offer a wide range of business services such as invoicing, inventory management, and retail point-of-sales services. The services are delivered via the Software as a Service (SaaS) model under the telecommunication services provider own brand, identity, and access control systems. These new services have the potential to drive data revenues by creating cross-selling opportunities with the bundling of SaaS with broadband and mobile services, and by selling higher average revenue per user (ARPU) offerings tied to software services that are critical to businesses.

Smart Devices To Set Mobile Commerce Alive

The advent of mobility concept and the affordability of devices have effectively changed the manner in which consumers utilise information and communication technology (ICT). The introduction of smart mobile devices with service provider bundling of data plans has caused a tremendous surge in smart phone adoption across the Southeast Asian countries. IDC estimates that the Southeast Asia smart phone market will reach US$11.6 billion by the end of 2012, growing at a five year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 33 percent over the period 2012-2016.

Socialytics Opens A Fresh Chapter In Customer Centricity

Enterprises across Southeast Asia anticipate that the business environment in 2012 will be volatile and are adopting a cautious and discerning approach towards IT investments. Customer centricity is a strategy that stays at the top of their business agenda, together with a focus on technologies that aid in heightening customer focus and customer engagement, as well as the identification of high-value customers.

Ultrabook – The New Battle Frontier For PC Vendors

Almost every major PC vendor has launched its version of the Ultrabook in the market. Intel’s Ultrabook fills the void between the full-size laptop and the tablet and is expected to boost sales in the consumer market which has not seen many truly innovative products over the past year. The Ultrabook come with super-slim designs, long-lasting battery life, high performance capabilities and most importantly, mainstream pricing. Vendors are hoping that the price of Ultrabooks will help to break the dominance of Apple’s MacBook Air in this segment, and open up this niche product to the mass market.

Enterprise Mobility: The New Workspace Service

IDC is of the opinion that in 2012, enterprise mobility will be more prevalent because of a number of factors: the development of new smartphones; lower handset prices; and, the need for various departments in an enterprise to drive improved service delivery, operational efficiency and communication with employees in the field. New developments and capabilities in mobile applications over the past few years along with advances in telecommunications networks have opened up opportunities for businesses to realise benefits across most departments and verticals. With this, IDC believes that mobility solutions will grow in importance in most organisations.

Analytics: Different Demands But With Singular Purpose

The need to cope with the aggressive growth of data — particularly as we move into the semi-structured and unstructured realm– continues to be a driving force behind need for analytics. With the proliferation of devices and form factors, the need to contend with the increased variety of data sources is not only introducing a number of challenges for organisations but also significant opportunities for the growth of analytics. In addition, with the shift toward a less predictable market, where uncertainty is becoming the norm, IDC expects increased awareness on and adoption of business analytics (BA) in order to support faster and more accurate decision making.

Cost Reduction Remains Top Of Mind For SMEs And Enterprises

In spite of the relatively positive view on ICT spending for 2012, results of IDC’s recent Asia/Pacific CIO Barometer survey reveals that majority of enterprises in ASEAN will still be cost conscious when pursuing their business strategies in 2012. While majority of CIOs cited increased ICT spending for 2012 in areas of on-demand services, mobility and social media tools, focus is still placed on how enterprises can reduce their overall cost structure within the organisation. Although CFOs have lightened their scrutiny on IT spending in recent years, they are still more watchful as compared to pre-crisis when ubiquitous spending on IT infrastructure was seen.