Survey Of Washington, D.C. Area Firms Shows IT Spending To Increase In 2003

The Adrenaline Group-sponsored Survey Finds D.C. Area Lagging In Open Source Investment

Arlington, VA, January 10, 2003-The Adrenaline Group, a technology consulting and software development company, announced today the results of a survey it conducted in November and December 2002 that targeted 500 Washington, D.C. area-based businesses. Survey participants in top executive positions responded to questions regarding 2003 plans for information technology (IT) spending, including dollar range of new investment and investment in Open Source solutions. Highlights of the survey show:

• 59% of respondents said they are increasing IT spending in 2003.
• The largest category of increase in IT spending is in the $250,000 to $1 million range.
• Only 38% of Washington area respondents were planning to use Open Source solutions, a figure that lags behind the national averages in deploying Open Source (a 2002 Morgan Stanley survey showed 46% of U.S. respondents had Open Source servers or planned to deploy them).
• The number of "No" responses (equal to those planning to use open source, 38%) and "Don't Know" responses (25%) to using Open Source indicates that many local enterprises are still climbing up the learning curve when it comes to Open Source software. This indicates Washington, D.C. businesses may be missing opportunities to use solutions that reduce costs in enterprise systems and operations.

Scott McLoughlin, chairman of The Adrenaline Group, said, "It's encouraging to see that firms in our area will be increasing IT spending this year, but at the same time, I'd like to see them getting the most value for their IT investment dollar. Adrenaline is a strong proponent of Open Source because it really works and, if you're not using it, you're leaving money on the table."

Adrenaline has used or recommended Open Source solutions for some aspect of every client project it's delivered. Open Source software is community-developed, free software that includes popular applications such as the Linux operating system, Apache web server and Sendmail email server. Its widespread adoption is underscored by significant investments in Open Source technologies by large technology companies such as IBM and Sun Microsystems, which often promote free applications in lieu of their commercial alternatives.

Survey respondents consisted of thirty-three in the $50 million+ revenue range, and seven came from the $20-49 million grouping. For a copy of the full report and accompanying graphics, please contact Diane Johnson at 703-391-2056 or diane@dtjorg.com. Graphs are available for reprint.

About The Adrenaline Group
The Adrenaline Group (www.adrenaline.com), headquartered in Arlington, VA, is a boutique technology services firm that works with companies to help management rationalize their enterprise IT ecology. Adrenaline provides small teams of highly qualified consultants that their clients can trust to help them make prudent IT decisions and accomplish more with fewer IT resources. Founded in 1997, Adrenaline has helped over 100 clients with their enterprise technology planning and implementation challenges, including Panasonic, Discovery Communications, Verisign, AmeriDebt, Venator/Foot Locker and Washington Post.Newsweek Interactive.

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