Headsup: CIOs Make Intelligence Top PriorityHeadsup: CIOs Make Intelligence Top Priority

Chief information officers rank business intelligence (BI) high on their lists of technology priorities, according to a recent Gartner survey. Among 1,400 CIOs polled, respondents planned to increase their BI budgets by an average of 4.8 percent in 2006.

Gartner analysts predict new license revenue in the worldwide BI software market will grow constantly through 2009, when they believe it will reach $3 billion. In 2006, the market is estimated to reach $2.5 billion, a 6 percent increase from 2005. This increase pales in comparison to other software categories. The analyst firm says growth estimates for this year were subdued in part because of limited BI skills. In addition, some firms perceive BI suites as having a high total cost of ownership, while others have difficulty quantifying the direct business benefits of better performance and decision making.

BI adoption will vary dramatically by region, Gartner predicts. The BI markets in Latin America and Asia/Pacific are expected to grow 11.3 percent and 13.6 percent, respectively, in the 2004-2009 time frame. Growth rates in North America, Western Europe and Japan are expected to lag behind the worldwide rate, as organizations in those regions rationalize past purchases.