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IT services are increasingly in demand, although big players like IBM still take most of the pot

Demand for IT services worldwide surged by 10.5% in 2007, spurred by above-par performances at the two market leaders and by the turbo-charged growth among India’s IT giants.

The upswing – to $748 billion in overall revenue – runs counter to the gloomy and widespread economic concerns arising in the US, says Gartner, with providers successfully selling the value proposition that “external spending on IT services and solutions can help customers save money and be more productive, even in a profoundly uncertain economic climate”.

IBM continued as the outright market leader, with its 7.2% share more than double that of nearest rival Accenture. Both those companies showed growth above the market average, at 12.2% and 19.7%, respectively. All others in the top six experienced revenue growth rates below 10.5%, with EDS’s revenues rising 3.4% and Fujitsu’s up 3.9%.

Despite the strong growth among India-based companies, none made the top six list in 2007. Gartner says that IT services revenue from companies headquartered in the subcontinent grew 38% in 2007, but these companies earned only 4.1% of global revenue, with US-headquartered vendors still dominating the sector with 55.4% of the total.

Also notable is that fact that the vast majority of revenue is generated by the hundreds of other companies outside the top league, where only 20% of the total market lies.