Salesforce.com vs. SAP for CRM Market Share

According to Gartner’s report, in 2011, the customer relationship management (CRM) software market was dominated by SAP, which captured a 19.3% market share. Salesforce.com came in second with a 16.7% market share, followed closely by Oracle at 16%. Microsoft was a distant fourth, with 7.5% worldwide CRM market share. But Salesforce is rapidly increasing sales to narrow the gap with SAP.

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As Competition Intensifies, Dell Embraces New IT Models

According to Gartner’s recently released global PC shipment report, worldwide PC shipments for the first quarter this year grew 1.9% over the year to 89 million units. Analysts projected growth of 1.2% during the period. HP expanded their market share from 16.9% a year ago to 17.2%, with shipment of over 15.3 million units. This was a very strong quarter for China-based Lenovo, which saw sales grow 28.1% over the year, helping them to surpass Dell and become the second-largest PC vendor in the world, with sales of 11.6 million units. It was a disappointing quarter for Dell, which saw sales fall 1.6% over the year, the first decline in two years, to 9.8 million units.

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HP Makes Aggressive Start on Overhaul Plans

Gartner’s global PC shipment report for the first quarter this year saw shipments in the U.S. fall 3.5% over the year to 15.5 million units. However, the market is relieved considering that Gartner analysts were projecting a fall of 6.1% during the quarter. Despite declining PC sales, HP seems to have walked out stronger. Gartner’s report estimates that HP’s PC shipments grew 6.6% over the year 4.5 million units. They now command 29% of the U.S. market compared with 26.2% a year ago.

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Genpact and Cognizant Expanding on Almost All Fronts

According to the Everest Group’s first quarter report on the global outsourcing and offshoring market, transaction volumes for global outsourcing contracts remained flat for the quarter. Overall contract values grew 11% over the year to $3 billion. The report saw improved activity in terms of contract signing within the BFSI (banking, financial services and insurance) sector, which saw transaction volumes grow 12% over the year. MDR (manufacturing, distribution and retail) vertical activities improved 9% over the year, but the healthcare vertical saw a large drop in deals signed during the quarter. International expansion continued during the quarter, with new centers being setup in Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe.

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LegalZoom.com Flourishes, with Bumps on the Way

According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, legal services in the country were a $266 billion market in 2010. There is a big demand for legal services by small and medium businesses. A study conducted by L.E.K. Consulting LLC revealed that in 2011, $97 billion was spent by the small businesses and consumers on legal services.

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Gogo Works to Capture More of a Nascent Market

Recently covered Boingo is working hard to get a footing in the air travel Wi-Fi space. It has to face tough competition from an existing airline Wi-Fi services provider, Gogo Inc. Illinois-based Gogo was founded in 2005 and now provides Wi-Fi services on nine major airlines in North America, including Delta, Virgin America, US Airways, and American Airlines. At present, there are only ten airlines on the North American continent that provider Wi-Fi access aboard their planes.

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Glam Media Prepares for IPO

The vertical-focused media company, Glam Media, is moving fast toward their IPO. The Ad Network powerhouse, which earns revenues through advertisements, recently selected Goldman Sachs and Bank of America as lead bankers for the IPO expected to be out by the end of the current quarter.

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Zynga Moves Farther from Facebook with Several Acquisitions

According to the Global Online Gaming Report released by yStats.com, global online gaming revenues are projected to grow at an annual growth rate of more than 10% from 2010 through 2016. Within the U.S., social gaming will continue to grow and account for more than 40% of Internet users in the country. This is obviously good news for game developers like Zynga.

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After Rebuke, Groupon Works to Restore Confidence

Earlier this year, newly listed daily deals provider Groupon faced rebuke from accountants. The company had to revise their previous quarter’s performance because their auditors found significant issues, material weaknesses and missing internal controls in their financial statements. To repair the damage their reputation, Groupon has worked hard and for the past quarter delivered a strong performance that surpassed market projections. They have also been shuffling their senior management positions and have put in place several more experienced leaders.

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Boingo Bringing Wi-Fi Under Ground and in the Air

According to the recently released Cisco Visual Networking Index: Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast Update, 2011-2016,  global mobile data traffic grew 2.3 times last year to 597 petabytes per month. The report estimates that the monthly global mobile data traffic will grow 78% annually over the period 2011 through 2016 to surpass 10 exabytes. Growth will be driven by Asia Pacific and Western Europe, which will account for more than half of global mobile traffic by 2016. The Middle East and Africa will record the highest CAGR of 104% during the term, and Asia Pacific will grow 21 times at a CAGR of 84%.

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