Debt Crisis Slows But Does Not Stop Growth For Indian IT Players

According to Gartner, worldwide spending on information technology is projected to grow 4.6% this year. This is the slowest rate at which IT spending has grown over the past three years. The depressed market conditions are driven largely by the debt crisis in Europe. Western Europe’s IT spending is projected to fall 0.7% over the year compared with growth of 3.4% anticipated earlier. Leaders of India’s $76 billion IT outsourcing industry believe that Europe will also impact their growth in the near future. However, despite their concern, these players continue to invest in partnerships, delivery center expansion, and product offerings.

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Yammer, Growing Fast, Raises Major VC Round and Delays IPO

Competition in the $10.3 billion enterprise social networking market is intensifying as leading players raise funds to fuel growth. At the end of 2011, Jive Software successfully tested IPO waters. But if the market was waiting for another player, Yammer, to go public, it may be waiting for a long time.

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Falling Revenues for WebMD and Epocrates

According to eMarketer, online ad spending by healthcare and pharmaceutical companies is projected to grow from $1.03 billion in 2010 to $1.86 billion in 2015. The pharma industry accounted for 4% of overall online ad spending in the U.S., with a total of $25.8 billion spent. The industry’s share is projected to rise to 4.2% by 2015. Growth in advertising spending will help medical information providers increase revenues.

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OpenTable: Acquisition Target for Google?

According to industry research, within North America, of the 300,000 full-service restaurants, there are nearly 55,000 that accept reservations. However, not all of them have signed up with a reservation services provider like OpenTable. Analysts believe that North America accounts for a quarter of the global restaurant industry, making international markets an even bigger opportunity.

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HomeAway Improves Offerings To Help Bring Customers Online

The $85 billion vacation rental market is projected to grow 13% annually. But the industry faces many concerns that analysts believe are limiting its growth potential. A study conducted to understand the problems facing the industry found that 46.3% of those surveyed have never used an online service to rent a vacation home in the past three years. This high figure does suggest that the industry has significant potential.

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MercadoLibre: Acquisition Target for Amazon?

According to researcher, eMarketer, business-to-consumer sales in Latin America, excluding Brazil, are projected to reach $15.2 billion by the end of the current year and will grow to $28.5 billion by 2015. Overall, analysts believe Latin America e-commerce will grow 20% annually, driven by increased Internet adoption by both consumers and marketers. Currently, less than 2% of retail products sold in the region are available online, pointing to a big opportunity for market growth. Brazil is another high-growth market with analysts estimating e-commerce sales in the country to grow more than 25% this year.

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Jive Software Going After Bigger Customers

According to Gartner, the enterprise software market is a $285 billion market. Within this, according to IDC estimates the enterprise social networking market will be worth $10.3 billion by 2013. The market remains largely untapped. Studies have revealed that just over 50% of enterprises have implemented some social networking tools.

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Online Music Business Models: Broken?

The U.S. radio market is expected to be worth $37 billion. Apart from traditional media companies, the market is being tapped by online radio players. Pandora, a recently listed player, claims that it has access to 5.5% of the U.S. radio market – significant growth over previous year’s share of 2.7%. But the increasing market share has not translated to improved margins. Like last week’s Tech Stock’s company Yelp, Pandora has yet to turn in a profit, and now analysts are doubting if the company would ever be able to report one.

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Yelp IPOs, Triples Revenues In Three Years, But Still No Profit

A number of technology IPOs continue to flow to the market this year. Although Facebook’s IPO may be the most anticipated, another social media player, Yelp, tested markets this year. Through their offering last week, the company raised $107 million by selling their stock at $15 a share. Yet their monetization capabilities still raise concerns.

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Online Travel: A Third of the World’s Travel Sales

According to PhoCusWright’s Global Online Travel Overview report, second edition, online travel sales will account for a third of the world’s travel sales by the end of 2012. Online leisure, or the unmanaged business travel market, is projected to be worth more than $313 billion this year. The report also projects an increase in online penetration rates in Asia Pacific and Latin America to help drive growth in travel bookings. Online travel players are growing internationally to respond to this change.

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