The ARC Advisory Group recently completed a study that forecasts that the geospatial information systems market will grow at 50% over the next five years. The study indicates that revenues will come largely from an infrastructure focus, with such projects such as electric power, oil and gas.
“GIS software differs from other enterprise software markets due to the extensive sales to businesses in non-cyclical sectors such as utilities and government. Therefore, the economic downturn’s effect on the GIS market is expected to be subdued in comparison to the downturn’s effect on other enterprise software markets,” according to Clint Reiser, Enterprise Software Analyst, and the principal author of ARC’s “Geospatial Information Systems Worldwide Outlook”.
This report also outlines the positive impacts of cloud-based computing and software-as-a-service offerings, in addition to the growth in mobile GIS. With the focus on growth and potential, I find this report much more interesting than the standard survey of the industry’s standing.
