Hard Facts: December 2, 2002

The strongest growth is in network hardware. The level of spending priority is higher in the October survey, compared with the July survey (the last time small businesses were polled) in all four subcategories CRN regularly surveys. In areas such as switches and routers, the upward trend has continued throughout this year.

Similar trends are evident in peripherals. Spending priorities for network printers also have risen steadily this year, while priority levels for flat-panel displays and UPSes increased in October vs. July.

Security continues to hold the highest level of spending priority for small businesses. Within this category, VPNs are showing strong increases in spending priorities. This is not surprising; the need for secure communications is growing more important as businesses of all sizes become increasingly mobile and more employees work remotely in branch offices or at home.