Tech
Singapore by the numbers
The island-state is a hotbed of technology activities. Here are some quick facts.
Singapore may have a population of just 4.6 million, but it continuously strives to reinvent itself and is now nurturing a goal to be an intelligent nation by 2015.
Home computer ownership and broadband adoption have increased. In 2006, 88 percent of households with school-going children owned PCs, up from 86 percent in 2005. Home broadband adoption, including wireless broadband subscriptions, stood at 68.4 percent in April 2007, and the island-state is on track to achieving 75 percent broadband penetration by the end of the year.
Here is a look at Singapore's IT profile:
| Households with computers: | 78 percent in 2006, up from 74 percent in 2005 |
| Households with Internet access: | 71 percent in 2006, up from 66 percent in 2005 |
| Household broadband penetration: | 72.9 percent in August 2007; on track to achieving goal of 75 percent by year-end |
| Business broadband adoption in 2006: | Less than 10 staff (44 percent); 10-49 staff (69 percent); 50-249 staff (83 percent); 250 and above (99 percent) |
| Residential broadband subscriptions: | 848,300 in Q3 2007 compared to 546,800 in Q3 2005 |
| Corporate broadband subscriptions: | 86,800 in Q3 2007 compared to 59,200 in Q3 2005 |
| Total wireless broadband subscriptions: | 2 million in September 2007 |
| Mobile phone penetration: | 110 percent in August 2007 |
| 3G subscribers: | 1.44 million in Q3 2007 compared to 66,200 in Q3 2005 |
| Total SMS sent: | 1.02 billion in August 2007 |
| IT spending for 2006: | US$4.74 billion, projected to hit US$5.03 billion and US$5.34 billion in 2007 and 2008, respectively |
| Infocomm industry revenue in 2006: | S$45.4 billion (US$31.3 billion), 19.9 percent increase from 2005; domestic revenue 36 percent, export revenue 64 percent in 2006 |
| Projected SMB software-as-a-service spending for 2007: | US$3 million |
| Per capita public sector IT spending in 2006: | US$152.89. In Asia-Pacific, Singapore ranks third after New Zealand (US$198.78) and Australia (US$193.82), in terms of per capita spend on IT in the public sector |
| Desktop PCs shipped in 2006: | 365,084 units, projected to hit 396,881 and 402,014 units in 2007 and 2008, respectively |
| Portable computers shipped in 2006: | 451,990, projected to hit 609,981 and 805,618 units in 2007 and 2008, respectively |
| x86 servers shipped in 2006: | 29,712, projected to top 33,254 and 34,064 units in 2007 and 2008, respectively |
| PDA/handhelds shipped in 2006: | 29,000 units, projected to fall to 20,700 and 17,000 units in 2007 and 2008, respectively |
| Software vendor revenues in 2006: | US$641.3 million, projected to top US$787.8 million and US$728.1 million in 2007 and 2008, respectively |
| Security vendor revenues (include software, hardware and services) in 2006: | US$129.4 million, projected to hit US$146.6 million and US$162.8 million in 2007 and 2008, respectively |
| Storage hardware revenues (include tape drives, tape automation, fiber channel switches, external disk storage systems) in 2006: | US$207.06 million, projected to drop to US$175.07 million and US$174.48 million in 2007 and 2008, respectively |
| Discrete outsourcing market size (where a select component of a company's IT environment is outsourced): | US$351.96 million in 2006, projected to top US$401.84 million and US$436.88 million in 2007 and 2008, respectively |
| Enterprisewide outsourcing market size (a comprehensive outsourcing contract which includes more than one discrete component): | US$235.07 million in 2006, projected to top US$243.78 million and US$251.94 million in 2007 and 2008, respectively |
| IT manpower: | 119,700 in 2006, 7.5 percent increase from 2005. Government aims to create 55,000 new infocomm jobs by 2015, pushing the total number up to 170,000 |
| Average annual salary of IT professionals in 2006: | S$64,943 (US$41,501), making Singapore IT pros the second-highest paid after Hong Kong, according to ZDNet Asia's IT Salary 2006 survey across seven countries |
Source: IDA, Wikipedia, Statistics Singapore, IDC Asia-Pacific, Springboard Research, ZDNet Asia IT Salary 2006 survey