CORPORATE IT SPENDING TO SLOW IN Q4: Corporate information technology spending is still growing, but the rate of growth will slow in the fourth quarter, led by a decline in laptop and desktop spending, according to a recently released study.
Only 31 percent of 628 business and technology professionals surveyed said that their company will increase fourth quarter IT spending - the lowest percentage recorded since June 2003, and down three points from the previous quarter, according to ChangeWave Research. Seventeen percent of those surveyed said that their spending either will decrease or that there will be no spending at all. The drop marks the third consecutive quarter in which there has been a downturn in the rate of IT spending growth, after five successive quarters of increased spending, noted ChangeWave founder Tobin Smith.
The largest drop-offs in Q4 spending will occur in laptops, desktops, database management software, application server software and PDAs. This is the third survey in a row in which desktops registered a decline and the second survey in a row for laptops - "a clear signal that the corporate PC upgrade cycle peaked back in the first quarter and has since been in decline," ChangeWave noted. Voice over Internet Protocol and customer resource management software registered the largest fourth quarter spending improvements.
When asked if their IT spending is on track thus far in the third quarter, 18 percent of respondents said that they have spent more than planned, down 1 percent, while 26 percent said that they have spent less than planned, up 4 percent.
Looking ahead to the first half of 2005, 30 percent of respondents thought that their company's overall IT budget will be greater than in the second half of 2004, down six points from the previous survey. Only 15 percent thought that it would be less than the second half of 2004, up four points.
CCH RELEASES PROSYSTEM FX WRITE-UP: CCH Tax and Accounting, a provider of tax and accounting software, has unveiled ProSystem fx Write-Up, a new application and the latest addition to the company's ProSystem fx Office suite.
The company said that the new offering was a "ground-up" development project using .Net, MSDE, and grid controls to allow greater flexibility in viewing and mining data and integration with other modules in the ProSystem fx Office suite, specifically Tax, Engagement and Trial Balance. In December the product is slated for a series of enhancements, including support for Dynalink/Quicklink; reporting the offset accounts in the general ledger as summary amounts; support for multiple tax years; and the ability to create tax journal entries.
JEFFERSON WELLS, AXENTIS TEAM ON SOX SOLUTION: Professional services firm Jefferson Wells International has partnered with Axentis, a provider of risk and compliance software, to launch an integrated Sarbanes-Oxley solution that provides end users with a real-time "defensible" audit trail. Terms were not disclosed.
According to the companies, the joint solution ensures "timely and educated decisions" with regards to Sarbanes-Oxley compliance, and will "favorably" impact shareholder value. In addition, the concerns said that the product helps companies streamline their SOX compliance budgets after the first-year costs by streamlining the process via features such as period management, a flexible and configurable control framework, dashboards, real-time reporting, and knowledge management.
"Companies have been taking a short-term approach to addressing the challenges of Sarbanes-Oxley by utilizing spreadsheet or repository tools," said Ted Frank, chief executive officer at Axentis. "Organizations should instead approach [Sarbanes-Oxley] in the same way they approach their monthly close by monitoring ongoing compliance."
PAYCYCLE LAUNCHES WHOLESALE PROGRAM: Online payroll services provider PayCycle has launched the PayCycle Wholesale Program for Accounting Professionals - a comprehensive, online payroll solution available at discounted wholesale pricing. The wholesale program is priced at $14.99 per client per month for the first five clients and $9.99 per month for subsequent clients. Direct deposit services, and federal and state electronic tax payments and filings - including W-2s - are also provided at no additional expense. The program offers toll-free customer service with payroll experts. PayCycle added that prior to year's end it plans to offer e-payments and filings for 1099 contractors.
