CONCEPT:

Software Accelerates European Economic Growth

Why Europe needs to invest more in IT.

Europe is facing a number of challenges that confront all Member States with stark choices, set against a background of international competitiveness, slow job creation, and an aging population. By investing more in IT and accelerating innovation, can Europe achieve more growth and better jobs?

The European Software Association and its members, including Business Objects, Dassault Systèmes, SAP and Microsoft, strongly believe that accelerating innovation through IT investment is key for economic growth and more employment.

The European Software Association, and European Commissioner Viving Reding, will hold a forum regarding the Economic Impact of SMEs and ISVs across Europe which will set-out the case for greater European investment in IT to accelerate innovation and deliver more jobs and better growth.

The crucial impact of IT investment in Europe's economy.

During the Forum an IDC Study on the Economic Impact of ITand Software on The European Union, Croatia, Norway, and Switzerland will be launched. According to the Study, the 28 European countries have invested more than €275 billion on IT hardware, software, and services, and employed almost 8 million people in the IT industry across Europe. More importantly, economic data is showing that IT spending is expected to grow at 6% a year from now through to 2009.

By 2009, it is expected that IT-related taxes will be €111 billion higher than in 2005. Over the next four years, the IT sector is expected to drive more than €269 billion in incremental tax revenues. Software-related employees and companies will generate over €180 billion in additional taxes by the end of 2009.

Software is key to employment across Europe.

The EU has set itself the target of increasing European employment by at least 2 million jobs yearly until 2010. In the next five years the IT sector will generate over 1.5 million new jobs, 60% of them software-related.

Software-enabled jobs (related to producing, servicing or distributing software) currently number 4.2 million, which represents 50% of employment in the sector. Software related employment in the region is expected to grow 50% faster than hardware-related employment.

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