Statistically Speaking

Worldwide CRM software revenue totaled $5.7 billion in 2005, a 13.7 percent year-over-year increase, thanks in large part to license and maintenance revenue, according to Gartner's "Market Share: CRM Software Worldwide, 2005." SAP retained its top spot, with $1.47 billion in CRM total software revenue, representing a 19.6 percent increase from 2004's $1.23 billion. Siebel Systems secured the second spot with $966.1 million, up 6.4 percent from 2004's $908.3 million. Oracle (including PeopleSoft) took third place, accruing $367.5 million, an 11.7 percent drop from 2004's $416.2 million. Salesforce.com captured the fourth spot with $280.7 million, up 77.7 percent from 2004's $158 million. Amdocs earned $276.4 million in 2005, up 22.3 percent from 2004's $225.9 million. "Others" accounted for $2.33 billion in 2005, a 12.6 percent boost from $2.07 billion in 2004.

U.S. households that subscribe to bundled communications services is expected to reach 85.4 million by 2010, double the current tally, according to IDC's "U.S. Multiplay Bundled Services 2006-2010." The firm predicts convenience and competitive pricing will create more demand for package deals of voice, video, broadband, and mobile wireless. Most bundles in homes today (82 percent in 2005) are double plays, bundles with two communication services. However, IDC is forecasting a significant drop in double-play service over the next five years, falling to 42 percent of total subscriptions by 2010. This is due to the growth in triple-plays and four-service bundles.

People using B2B sites accomplish what they set out to do only 58 percent of the time, compared to 66 percent of the time for consumer e-commerce sites, according to Nielsen Norman Group's study, "B2B Website Usability: Design Guidelines for Converting Business Users into Leads and Customers." As part of its research process, Nielsen Norman Group conducted 12 focus groups, observed 55 business professionals using nearly 200 B2B sites, and performed field studies at seven companies.

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