Indian ICT market to reach $24.3 billion by 2011: Gartner

Driven by increased use of technology by small and mid-sized businesses, the country's information and communication technology market is estimated to grow 20.3 pc annually to reach USD24.3 bn by 2011, industry research firm Gartner said.

"The growth will be driven by chief information officers (CIOs) continuing to build and consolidate the basic IT infrastructure, in addition to small and mid-size businesses increasingly leveraging technology to drive business growth and efficiency," it said. The total Indian ICT market was 9.6 billion dollar in 2006, including hardware and software.

Though worldwide IT budgets are expected to increase by 3.3 percent in 2008, slightly higher than 2007, the Indian firms would report stronger-than-average IT budget increases of around 13 percent.

"This increased spending by Indian CIOs is directed primarily towards building new business capabilities, with 30 percent of IT spend allocated for business growth and 19 percent towards business transformation," the firm said.

The Indian technology landscape was evolving rapidly, driven by continued growth in the offshore services sector with strong domestic growth.

Indian firms are spending their budgets more on hardware and software than on people, Gartner said, adding this is significant as Indian firms continue to build out their infrastructure.

The HR component of the IT budget would grow as the emphasis shifts from implementing standard (generic) solutions to creating unique products and services, it added.