Abstract
Report Focus
This report focuses on demand drivers for instant messaging, presence and
real-time communication capabilities. The research conducted for this report,
as well as the report itself, are focused on the needs of vendors, investors
and others who are interested in participating in this space. The information
presented is designed to help vendors and other interested parties make
informed decisions about the future opportunities available in this market.
The research was conducted, and this report was written, from an objective
viewpoint, not with any predisposition for or against a particular point of
view. Because multiple vendors were involved in funding this report, no
particular vendor' s viewpoint had an influence on shaping the research focus,
although early subscribers to the report were given the opportunity to provide
input to the research program conducted specifically for this report.
Key Findings and Trends Discussed in this Report
Instant Messaging Grows Up
There are numerous indicators pointing to instant messaging' s maturation
within the enterprise. The proportion of respondents indicating that there was
a business case for enterprise instant messaging increased since last year.
The people deciding on the purchase of enterprise instant messaging are now
increasingly IT management, suggesting that enterprise instant messaging
systems may be gaining greater acceptance within business and no longer
require the sort of executive or line of business sponsorship needed for new
applications.
Not Just Instant Messaging
Having said that, the story isn' t about just instant messaging; it' s about the
entire unified communications package. Desktop videoconferencing showed the
highest growth rate, increasing by 145% since last year and Web conferencing
tool growth of 87% exceeded last year' s projected 37% growth, as noted above.
Adding video and voice to instant messaging is now more popular than it was
last year. The most desired voice features are incoming call alerts and
calling rules.
Going Mobile
Mobile instant messaging remains the fastest growing segment of the instant
messaging market. The spread of smartphones and unlimited data plans will help
organizations project communications costs and only encourage the spread of
mobile instant messaging. The biggest users for mobile instant messaging
continues to be travelling employees and senior technical managers.
Why Enterprise Instant Messaging?
The drivers for enterprise instant messaging remain consistent with last
year' s research with the exception that there is greater emphasis on
increasing infoworker productivity in the event of an email outage. More than
one-half of respondents indicated that it was common or very common for them
to use instant messaging to support communications and collaboration.
Consumer Connections Remain Critical
Organizations are more receptive than last year to keeping some form of
consumer instant messaging service in use within their organizations. Far more
respondents this year indicated that they were willing to compromise on
security for consumer client connectivity. Furthermore, more respondents
indicated that they will not swap out their employees' consumer-grade instant
messaging clients in favor of enterprise-grade clients.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
- Background and Methodology
Chapter 3
- The Current State of Real-Time Communications
Chapter 4
- Drivers for Presence and Real-Time Communications
Chapter 5
- Adoption of Enterprise Instant Messaging
Chapter 6
- Desired Features and Functions
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
- Inhibitors to Real-Time Communications
Chapter 9
- The Future of Real-Time Communications
List of Figures
- North American Instant Messaging Penetration, 2008-2011
- Email Users Equipped With Various Other Communication Technologies
- Enterprise Instant Messaging Systems That Have Been Deployed
- Length of Time That Employee- and IT-Deployed Instant Messaging Has Been
in Use
- “Have any of your employees ever been fired for looking at other
employees' email or instant messaging conversations without having permission
to do so?”
- Key Drivers for Instant Messaging Use
- “Does your organization develop and/or deploy any applications on
top of your instant messaging/presence infrastructure, such as allowing access
to a CRM system or enterprise directory through an instant messaging
interface?”
- Effectiveness of Instant Messaging as a Means of Reducing Telephone and
Fax Costs
- Key Decision Makers for Deployment of Enterprise Instant Messaging
Solutions
- Current Status of Adoption for Enterprise Instant Messaging
- Importance of Reasons for Rolling Out Enterprise Instant Messaging
- “If you have deployed (or would deploy) enterprise instant
messaging, what are (or would) your plans for consumer instant
messaging?”
- “Does your organization have a formal policy related to instant
messaging use?”
- Elements Included in Instant Messaging Policies
- Preference for Protecting Consumer Instant Messaging vs
- Plans for Deploying a System to Archive Instant Messages
- Importance of Various Functions in Integrating Instant Messaging and
Telephony
- Importance of Various Capabilities for Instant Messaging Security
- Importance That The Instant Messaging / Real-Time Communications System
Come From the Same Vendor as the Corporate Email System
- “Is your organization willing to accept some reduction in the
security of your internal messaging systems in order to allow your users to
communicate via public instant messaging networks?”
- Key Job Functions That Use / Would Use Wireless Instant Messaging
- “How common is it for instant messaging presence to be used to
facilitate communications and collaboration in your organization?”
- Knowledge of How to Use Presence Outside the Context of Instant Messaging
- Factors That Are Holding Back Greater Use of Presence
- Reasons for Not Deploying Enterprise Instant Messaging as a Pilot or in
Production
- Concerns About Enterprise Instant Messaging
- Reasons for Being Unlikely to Replace Consumer-Grade Instant Messaging
Clients
- Barriers to Integrating Instant Messaging / Real-Time Communications With
Telephony Views on the Impact of Instant Messaging on Email Traffic
- Importance of Extending Presence, Instant Messaging and Real-Time
Communications Into Various Applications
- Likelihood of Swapping Out Consumer-Grade Instant Messaging Clients in
Favor of Enterprise-Grade Clients During the Next 12 to 24 Months
- Importance of Using Instant Messaging for B2B and B2C Communications, 2008
and 2009
- Email Users That Use or Will Use Telephone Integration, Such as the Use of
a Soft Phone in Their Instant Messaging Client, 2008 through 2011
- Importance of the Concept of Presence, 2008 and 2009
- Priority of Integrating Presence Into Other Applications, 2008 and 2009
- Interest in the Use of Wireless / Mobile Instant Messaging, 2008 and 2009
- Median Budget per Email User for Instant Messaging and Presence, 2007
through 2009 Delivery Models Used for Instant Messaging and Real-Time
Communications Capabilities, 2008 and 2009
- Desirability of Various Delivery Models for Enterprise Instant Messaging
and Real-Time Communications Capabilities
- Desirability of Various Delivery Models for Enterprise Instant Messaging
and Real-Time Communications Capabilities If Options 3 and 4 Were Priced
>50% Lower Than Options 1 and 2
List of Tables
- Instant Messaging Systems in Use, Being Considered and Not Being Considered
- Importance of Various Communication and Collaboration Capabilities
- “If you were going to roll out instant messaging to each of the
following groups, which would you prefer for each group?”
