The folks at GotVMail.com (who buy a lot of commercials on talk radio) just sent across an email with the following:
Wall Street's implosion last week and the lack of a financial agreement in the White house has the financial markets reeling, the government scrambling, the media debating and citizens dreading. But as with any recession, gaps form, and opportunities to fill those gaps present themselves. With massive financial layoffs, the market is seeing an influx of consultants and financial advisors, which could be an opportunity for technology services providers.
(The note then goes on to talk about GotVMail's virtual communication services.)
It's a tough proposition to talk about "opportunity" a day after a lot of people saw their retirement savings wiped out or businesses pushed to the brink. But the inescapable upshot, for the IT industry, is that the massive consolidation in finance is going to have lasting repercussions. Big banks that have standardized on Lotus Notes, for example, are merging with bigger banks that have standardized on Microsoft Exchange, and vice versa. On a case by case basis, one platform will win and one will lose.
The same could be said for security platforms, desktops, databases, messaging and more. Just because a bank collapses doesn't mean its data goes away, and it doesn't mean fiduciary responsibilities (like compliance) go away. They just get transferred, streamlined and/or migrated.
Once Washington, D.C. puts out the final world on whether there's going to be a bailout, a rescue or nothing, the banking world will get on with its massive and historic consolidation. Count on that being followed by significant - - perhaps even sweeping - - changes in the IT market share landscape.
