Methodology

IDC's Customer Insights & Analysis group develops models and forecasts for hundreds of technologies across the globe. The highest availability of statistical sources on the economy, firmographic and survey data, as well as qualitative inputs and secondary research serve as the basis of our studies. ICT suppliers, end-users and investors rely on us for all of the tools and data necessary to develop a comprehensive understanding of industry and customer trends and spending worldwide.

For years, IDC has successfully launched multiple surveys that reach thousands of end-users from organizations of all sizes across all industries. This effort identifies growth and segmentation patterns by industry and company size for IT and organizational spending. In other words, we examine the relationship between firm level revenue and propensity to adopt and invest in various technologies. These relationships are used to generate assumptions which are then applied to an extensive firmographic database.

Our rigorous forecasting processes include multiple cross-checks to ensure that results make sense and are reliable at the micro and macro level. This approach not only results in internally consistent segmentation and trending, but is also reflective of a consensus among a wide range of research analysts with differing backgrounds.