12:00 - 1:00 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time

As the global economy faced up to persistent headwinds in the first half of 2008, ranging from record oil prices to continuing financial market volatility, tech industry performance remained relatively resilient. The second half of the year, however, will bring another round of budget reviews as organizations turn an eye towards 2009. Spending levels will be increasingly scrutinized as businesses seek to contain costs and risk, necessitating a further examination of short-term investment plans for new or replacement hardware and software. While early budget reviews may have focused initially on the pace of hardware upgrades, software and solution spending plans could also be placed under the microscope in the coming months. How vulnerable are software markets to a continued period of weakness in the global economy? What will be the impact of continuing macroeconomic volatility on overall IT demand in the next 3-12 months? Which vendors are best positioned to take advantage of current market drivers?

In this telebriefing, a team of IDC analysts and economists will interpret IT spending trends and indicators from the first half of 2008 in the context of an updated outlook for market performance in the next 12 months. New forecasts and survey data will be used to answer questions such as:

• How has the economic slowdown impacted software spending so far in 2008, and what are the scenarios for the next 12 months?
• What might be impact on the tech industry of price inflation?
• What impact is the US economic slowdown having in other regions?
• Will emerging international IT markets maintain their current momentum into 2009?

Session Speakers:

• Stephen Minton, Vice President, Worldwide IT Markets and Strategies
• Anna Toncheva, Program Manager and Economist, Worldwide IT Markets and Strategies
• Henry Morris, Senior Vice President, Worldwide Software and Services Research

If you do not subscribe to IDC's services and would like to participate, please contact Michael Shirer at 508-988-7892 or [email protected].

Audio replays of this telebriefing are available to all registered participants the day after the event.