COVID-19 pushes spending on comms and collaboration software

Data and analytics company GlobalData has predicted that, although enterprise spending on most ICT solutions in Australia will decline in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the communications and collaboration software market will register a year-on-year growth of 20%. An analysis of GlobalData’s revised market opportunity forecasts for enterprise ICT in Australia has revealed that the communications and collaboration software market size in the country will reach US$621 million ($841 million) by the end of 2020 — approximately 1.1% more than what was estimated before the COVID-19 outbreak.

Nidhi Gupta, Technology Analyst at GlobalData, noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has compelled businesses and government offices to embrace new ways of communication and collaboration, and to accelerate their shift towards remote work. This has led to an increase in the adoption of communication and collaboration software across enterprises in the country. GlobalData predicts that enterprise social networking and collaboration platforms, which enable employees to collaborate remotely, will see its revenue grow year on year by 29% in 2020.

Revenue from communication platforms, including cloud-based communication software, will grow by 6% in 2020, compared to its baseline growth forecast of 3% for the year. The communications and collaboration software market in Australia will maintain its momentum and register a CAGR of 13.8% over the forecast period 2019–2024.

“While SMEs will remain the largest revenue-contributing segment for communication and collaboration software market in Australia through the forecast period, given the long-term digital transformation strategies, large enterprises will represent the fastest-growing market segment,” said Gupta.

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