The much-talked about IT recovery is on its way, Gartner says. According to Michael Fleisher, CEO of the analyst firm, more and more corporate IT managers plan to replace aging equipment, apply new technologies to improve efficiency, and pursue new opportunities created by advances in open-source software and wireless communications.

Speaking at the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo conference in the US, Fleisher said: "A big turn is coming."

"We believe 2006 will look just as different when compared with 2003 as 2003 looks when compared with 1999. Companies are beginning to make the turn from protecting profitability to driving growth. Cost-cutting will remain important, but it will no longer be your CEO's number one priority," he said.

He identified four areas for growth including "secure broadband wireless, 'always on, always connected' mobile devices with very low power-consumption requirements, very reliable and very cheap computing power provided by real-time enterprise infrastructure, and a transition to service-oriented IT architectures.

"Just as the Internet unleashed productivity gains that revolutionised the securities, music and travel industries, the next wave of innovation triggered by these four technologies will be equally ground-breaking." ®