SAS Ranked No. 1 in Business Intelligence Market in Hong Kong

HONG KONG, Aug. 27 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- SAS, the global leader in business intelligence, is pleased to announce that IDC has ranked SAS as No. 1 in the business intelligence (BI) and business performance management (BPM) market in Hong Kong, with 25.8 percent market share in 2006.

According to IDC's Asia/Pacific Semiannual Software Tracker, 2H06, May 2007, SAS has achieved a larger market share in the BI and BPM market in Hong Kong than any of the other vendors in the market. "The key strengths of SAS compared to other key BI players are its well-established customer base and analytics technology," said Antony Lee, Market Analyst for IDC's Asia/Pacific Software Research.

Errol Chan, chief operating officer of SAS Institute Ltd., is delighted that SAS has reached the top spot in the highly competitive local BI and BPM market. "IDC's ranking of SAS as the Number One business intelligence vendor in Hong Kong confirms the very real benefits that we bring to companies in Hong Kong," he said. "Our investment in broad analytics capabilities coupled with our focus on domain expertise allow our customers to enjoy the solid analytical foundation they need to gain the competitive edge."

Growing Needs for BI in Hong Kong

According to IDC, Hong Kong's combined BI and BPM market is expected to grow steadily at a CAGR of 8.2 percent in the forecast period of 2006 to 2011. "The growth is mainly led by the increasing awareness of and demand for business intelligence among various local industries, such as banking, telecommunications, retail, manufacturing, and transportation and logistics," said Lee. "Greater demand of business intelligence in Hong Kong is due to keen competition or the needs to fulfill regulatory compliance in different sectors."

The IDC report revealed that financial service industries are hungry for the power to analyse large volumes of transactional data - particularly by deploying real-time or near real-time analytics capabilities. Also, increased competition and the resulting strain on margins have forced many retailers, especially chain stores, to effectively consolidate and analyze their sales environments in order to make swift decisions.

"To meet market demand, SAS will continue to invest heavily in R&D," said Chan. "This year, new SAS customers in Hong Kong include Dah Sing Financial Holdings and Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts."