International Data Corp is forecasting problems for hardware vendors in the computer services market. The demand for added value is ever increasing, and most of the major hardware vendors are trying to embrace software and services in their overall offerings, in order to remain competitive. But therein lies a conflict of interest, because as systems integrators they are faced with the dilemma of whether to use their own hardware no matter what, or whether to concede that another vendor’s kit might in some cases be a better fit. IDC’s EDP Deutschland has produced a report on facilities management, entitled Outsourcing, Computerwoche reports, which highlights just these points, and suggests that customers might prefer to stick to the larger independent consultancies such as Electronic Data Systems Corp Andersen Consulting, just to ensure they are getting fair, impartial deal.
