Worldwide SMB 2010 Top 10 Predictions: Return to IT Spending Growth Will Be Driven by New Quest for Productivity

This IDC study is one of a number of top 10 predictions documents published by IDC as the year begins. The worldwide SMB predictions document examines the IT market overall, with additional detail on each of the four major regions: North America; Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA); Asia/Pacific; and Latin America. The changing pattern of SMB technology acquisition and use as the global economy improves will provide both opportunity and challenges moving forward.

"The $18 billion increase in SMB IT spending is really just one part of the changing market as we emerge from recession," said Raymond Boggs, vice president of SMB research at IDC. "Different regions and different technologies are associated with different spending changes, but overall, the biggest market transformation will be in the attitude of SMBs toward technology, which will be increasingly viewed as integral to long-term company success."