The Norwegian market is relatively small, but technology savvy, innovative and largely
homogeneous, and often one of the first to try out new technology. This makes Norway, along
with its Nordic neighbors, a good entry point into the European market for many U.S.
companies. Statistics Norway indicates that the overall ICT market in Norway is worth more
than USD 60 billion.
The Norwegian ICT market is in a high growth period, and is expected to remain so for a few
more years. After a slow period, some ICT market segments have enjoyed growth rates of 15
per cent, according to Statistics Norway.
Norwegian consumers’ demand for e-commerce is high. The value of e-commerce in Norway
has increased from USD 290 million to USD 610 million according to the analyst firm MMI. The
increase in e-commerce may be a result of more diverse and higher quality goods on offer, that
consumer confidence and IT skills are on the increase, and that ever more suppliers of products
and services use the Internet as a sales channel. Surveys indicate that 66% of Internet users
have ordered products and services online at some time, TNS Gallup reports. Books, travel, IT
equipment and clothing are still the best-selling products on the Internet, while films, tickets and
books have the highest growth rates. Air travel makes up 83% of travel booked online.
A need for more sophisticated storage solutions in Norwegian enterprises create opportunities.
Systems Integrators offering these solutions in Norway report of 60-70% storage growth
annually. Some clients need to expand their capacity by as much as 200%. This expansive
growth requires differentiating cost of data storage based on usage. US vendors and service
providers can profit from this market opportunity by offering analysis services, applications and
hardware.
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