发布时间：2008.7

摘要

Market Overview

BMI expects the Czech IT market to grow at a rate well above that of the economy as a whole, andprojects a CAGR of 9% for the 2008-2012 forecast period. BMI forecasts that the total size of the CzechIT market will increase from just over US$4bn in 2007 to around US$6.2bn in 2012. The economic cyclehas now likely passed its peak, but as double-digit PC sales growth demonstrates, the marketfundamentals of rising incomes, growing small business demand and above-European-average per-capitaIT spending provide grounds for continued optimism.

Despite being one of the most mature IT markets in the region, the Czech Republic offers plenty ofgrowth potential. Computer penetration is still some way behind the EU average, and is expected to reach60.9% of the population by 2009. Driven by falling prices, demand for PCs and notebooks will remainstrong in 2008, with consumers also looking for new functionalities. Another driver is increasinginternational investment in global services and outsourcing facilities in the Czech Region, although thereis a risk that skill shortages could drive up costs.

New EU funds earmarked for ICT projects will continue to flow into the market in 2008, supportingprojects in areas such as Education and the Justice System. Economic liberalisation will generateopportunities in financial, transport and retail sectors, among others.

Industry Developments

A number of major new IT initiatives are being rolled out in 2008. The Transport Ministry is currentlyintroducing a new system of computer chips for vehicles. The new chips will be rechargeable throughATMs or cell phones and will enable police to monitor traffic more effectively. Other current initiativesinclude a CZK130mn drive by the Education Ministry this year to connect all Czech libraries to theinternet by the end of the year, and an electronic network connecting 24,000 pharmacies in the CzechRepublic.

Meanwhile, concern is growing that a shortage of suitably skilled labour in the IT sector could limit theCzech Republic’s ability to attract international investment in strategic services and outsourcing. Onevisible symptom is increasing salaries in the sector. The average salary for an IT worker in the countryincluding bonuses is now around CZK65,780. Some IT companies including HP recently havecomplained about the challenge of a lack of suitable employees.

In December 2007, the Czech government announced that the long anticipated introduction of biometricpassports will be postponed until 2009. The government attributed the further delay in launching themajor IT project to the failure of the EU to approve technical specifications.

Competitive Landscape

Acer was the main beneficiary of 25% growth in the Czech PC market last year. The Taiwanese vendormoved into first place in the market on the back of strong notebook sales, ahead of rivals HP and Asus.Close to 1mn units were sold in total last year. Acer had around 18% of the market, while HP and Asuseach had around 12%.

Turning to software, and market leader Microsoft recently approved a major software licensingframework contract with the government. The contract was reportedly worth CZK0.5bn. The frameworkagreement sets maximum levels for licence fees to be paid by government authorities. However,individual ministries will still be free to sign contracts with other entities

Computer Sales

A major growth driver continued to be falling notebook prices, with the cheapest units already below theCZK10,000 (US$624) level, including legally installed software. As recently as Q407 the cheapest pricewas around US$724, and while some analysts believe that prices cannot fall much further, BMI believesthat prices of CZK8,000 are likely this year. HP already offers the HP 530 notebook with software forCZK9,000. Market leader Acer offers a similar product at just over CZK10,000.

In 2007, around 1mn PC units were sold. Computer sales (including desktops, notebooks and accessories)had an estimated value of close to US$1.5bn, up 12% year-on-year (y-o-y). In 2008 growth is expected tobe remain strong, driven particularly by notebook sales, which are likely to exceed desktops as pricescontinue to fall.

Software

After 10 years of fairly strong investment by larger Czech manufacturing companies in ERP andenterprise solutions, the market is approaching saturation in some verticals, directing vendor attentiontowards the SME sector. BMI has estimated a software market value of US$759mn in 2007, up 5% onthe previous year. The market should be worth approaching US$1.4bn by 2012, although much willdepend on success in bringing down a piracy rate which remains above the EU average. Software as aservice is on the rise in the Czech Republic, with smaller companies placing greater emphasis on valuefor money.

Services

BMI estimates that sales revenue of IT services rose 11% in 2007 to around US$1.2bn, as EUmembership continued to provide impetus in the form of foreign investment inflows and funds from EUprogrammes. The Czech market was ahead of many other Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) countries inmoving to a relatively high level of spending on IT services, and the local market is expected to grow at aCAGR of 11% to just over US$2bn by 2012. The more sophisticated market means that there is moredemand for applications tailored to specific verticals, as well as systems consolidation and platformintegration.

E-Readiness

Much of the current growth in internet connectivity is now coming from conversion from narrowband tobroadband rather than overall growth in internet usage. The Czech Republic still lags behind WesternEurope in high-speed internet connections, with around seven per 100 citizens, compared with 20 inWestern Europe. In 2007 the number of broadband users surpassed 1.2mn. In one survey the CzechRepublic ranked third for PCs per household among new EU member states at accession and overall PCpenetration is around 30% currently and expected to rise to 50% by 2009.

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