Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Worldwide Software-as-a-Service Revenue to Reach $14.5 Billion in 2012

Worldwide software-as-a-service (SaaS) revenue is forecast to reach $14.5 billion in 2012, a 17.9 percent increase from 2011 revenue of $12.3 billion, according to Gartner, Inc. SaaS-based delivery will experience healthy growth through 2015, when worldwide revenue is projected to reach $22.1 billion.

Although growing interest has been observed in vertical-specific software, the most widespread use is still characterized by horizontal applications with common processes, among distributed virtual workforces and within Web 2.0 activities.

North America, specifically the U.S., currently represents the largest opportunity for SaaS, and it is the most mature of the regional markets. SaaS software revenue is forecast to total $9.1 billion in 2012, up from $7.8 billion in 2011. Consistent with other regions, North America shows the highest SaaS deployments in expense management, financials, email and office suites. Use of Web conferencing is higher in North America than in other regions, in part because of a highly distributed workforce.
In Western Europe, SaaS revenue is forecast to surpass $3.2 billion in 2012, up from $2.7 billion in 2011, while SaaS revenue is Eastern Europe is projected to reach $169.4 million, up from $135.5 million last year. Gartner analysts said SaaS adoption in EMEA is currently running at two speeds.

SaaS revenue in Asia/Pacific is on pace to reach $934.1 million in 2012, up from $730.9 million in 2011. Overall, SaaS adoption in Asia/Pacific has been fragmented. Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan) is a combination of mature markets, such as Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan, and emerging markets, including China, India, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines.
While the Japanese economy is still struggling and IT budgets are limited, the demand for SaaS solutions is increasing due to their lower implementation costs and faster deployment times. SaaS revenue in Japan is forecast to reach $495.2 million in 2012, up from $427 million in 2011. Gartner forecasts that growth of the SaaS market in Japan through 2015 will be led by CRM and email/groupware, which already have actual demand.

SaaS revenue in Latin America is forecast to total $419.7 million in 2012, up from $331.1 million last year. In Latin America, SaaS has become most popular to deploy in the areas of email, financial management (accounting), sales force automation and customer service, and expense management.

Gartner defines total software revenue as revenue from new licenses, subscriptions, and software maintenance and technical support services that include license sales to update/upgrade an existing license to a new version, telephone support and on-site remedial support. SaaS is primarily a software delivery and management approach that exists in established markets, such as CRM or ERP.
More information on SaaS can be found at www.CRMindustry.com

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