International Data Corp. foresees double-digit growth for printing services

MANILA, Philippines – Research firm International Data Corp. (IDC) expects a double-digit growth for the managed print services (MPS) market this year despite the current economic slowdown. 

In its latest report, IDC said the MPS market for the Asia-Pacific region, excluding Japan, is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 15.5 percent from $419.9 million in 2008 to $863.4 million in 2013. 

MPS in the emerging economies are expected to see rapid growth in the next five years while the mature markets are seen experiencing growth, although at a declining rate.

Suchitra Narayan, research manager for IDC’s Asia-Pacific IT Services Research, noted that the MPS market will see growth sparked, to a certain extent, by the global economic downturn.

“The current economy is turning organizations away from capital investments, resulting in an increase in demand for extension of warranties and increased services and maintenance contracts. The decline in hardware sales is being adequately balanced by the demand for MPS. IDC expects a significant segment of the hardware refresh cycles scheduled for 2010 to be delayed to early 2011, therefore improving the services demand for 2010,” he said.

Cost management is still the common and key focus across verticals and countries, IDC noted. While early 2008 saw a migration from basic cost savings to value added services such as business process improvements and green technologies, the current economic conditions have forced organizations to revisit their focus on the basics – cost management.

IDC explained that MPS fits well into the new demand from organizations which is migrating capital expenditure to operating expense and increasing the life cycle of hardware.

IDC expects to see double-digit growth for the MPS market from 2009 to 2013, especially in China, India and Indonesia, assuming political stability in these markets. The China and India markets, in particular, represent large opportunities that are the only bright sparks in IT services for the region given the current economy.

Despite the uncertain economic times, the financial and government sectors, which are key proponents of document management solutions in the region, will continue to invest in the same, the study noted.

It said the rational for investments are varied with the financial sector focusing on cost management, operational efficiency, transparency and compliance; while the government sector, targeting operational efficiencies, is keen to invest in the local market to boost the economy.

A recent IDC survey conducted in 10 countries across the region revealed that 18.8 percent of the organizations polled in the financial sector will continue to seek document related solutions, particularly print accounting and management related solutions, over the next one to two years.

Because of the changes in the fundamentals of doing business within the financial sector, and the increasing focus on transparency and compliance, document archival and storage will also be a key area with 26.7 percent of organizations polled, seeking such solutions in the short term, compared to 16.8 percent who will focus on document security.