IT budgets for 2016 have seen a significant shift towards spending on software and services, with a decrease in hardware expenditure. This trend reflects the ongoing move to cloud services and the use of mobile devices. Surveys show that the average IT budget has increased by 2%, with a strong focus on security and cloud services.
CIOs are increasingly prioritising digital transformation, with a surge in spending on customer-facing applications and middleware. However, the majority of IT budgets are still consumed by ongoing operations and system maintenance.
The retail sector is leading the way in IT spending, with a 4.6% increase in budgets, followed by healthcare and professional services. Meanwhile, government and education sectors have seen a decrease in IT budgets.
In terms of geographic distribution, North America is the biggest spender on IT, followed by Western Europe and Asia-Pacific. The Middle East and Africa have the smallest IT budgets.
Overall, the IT spending landscape is evolving, with a shift towards software and services, and a focus on security and digital transformation.
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