IDC Celebrates 50th Anniversary with Web Micro-Site

To mark its 50th anniversary as the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets, International Data Corporation (IDC) on Wednesday announced the launch of a commemorative micro-site featuring highlights from IDC’s history and focusing on new technology market trends and opportunities.

Founded in Newton, Massachusetts by Patrick J. McGovern, IDC’s first publication was the EDP Industry and Market Report, which announced the pending launch of the IBM System/360 in its inaugural issue.

In just a few short years, IDC’s forecast and analysis reports attracted a following among professionals in the nascent computing industry.

As the industry grew and evolved, IDC’s research expanded to meet market needs. In 2013, IDC published more than 4,700 reports, ranging from technology market revenue forecasts and vendor evaluations to deep analyses of industry events and what IT buyers need.

Since its inception, IDC has been an early mover and leader in expanding into international markets, following the expansion of the IT industry as computing power was deployed in businesses around the world.

After establishing its headquarters in Framingham, Massachusetts, IDC opened its first international office in London in 1968, followed four years later by an office in Tokyo, its first in the Asia/Pacific region.

Today, IDC has offices in 54 countries and provides research coverage for more than 110 countries worldwide.

With nearly half of its 1,100-plus analysts based in emerging markets, IDC offers an unparalleled understanding of how information technology is impacting local economies as well as the global economy.

Over the course of the past 50 years, IDC’s research has covered the IT industry’s transition from mainframe/terminal computing (1st Platform), designed exclusively for enterprise and scientific use, to client/server computing (2nd Platform), which brought computing to hundreds of millions of users.

As the foundation for each era of computing, the two platforms served as the focal point for industry innovation and growth.

Also, the IT industry is in the midst of another transition to the 3rd Platform, based on the four technology pillars of cloud, mobility, big data and analytics, and social media.

IDC predicts that these 3rd Platform technologies and solutions will drive more than 50% of worldwide IT spending, and nearly 100% of its growth, by 2020.

The application of information technology within businesses has undergone a similar transition as the IT industry has evolved from the 1st Platform to the 2nd and 3rd Platforms.

The IT industry initially offered broad platforms designed to help businesses run more efficiently by automating many operational functions.

As technology became more deeply embedded within businesses, it also grew more specialized and brought about greater collaboration and agility.

Today, technology is an important source of innovation, enabling companies to create competitive advantage and disrupt entire industries with new products and services.

To help business leaders better understand how technology is redefining the energy, financial services, government, healthcare, manufacturing, and retail sectors, the IDC Insights lines of business combine vertical industry expertise with a deep understanding of IT.

“As the first market research firm to cover the information technology industry, we are proud to have played an important role in its growth and evolution,” said Kirk Campbell, president and chief executive officer of IDC.

“Much of IDC’s success can be attributed to the expertise our analysts have developed over the years, and the relationships we have built with the companies that create technology solutions as well as those that use these solutions. All of us at IDC are excited about the amazing changes that technology will bring in the next 50 years.”