IT landscape in France
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Software development
 

Contrarily to the hardware sector, French sofware still shows a degree of competitiveness and is quite successful, especially in the area of IT services and consultancy. Performance is good in software services based around system integration and the development of applications. Its relative success at the European level can be explained by the role of consultants/strategists in IT integration within the firms. In particular, large firms created subsidiary companies out of their own IT divisions, hiring out IT personel on a daily basis. Also, new cutting-edge software firms were created by the expansion of public-sector research centers in high-tech areas such as artifical intelligence, software tools and so forth.
The software industry adapted to increased competition by concentrations and mergers, gerater specialization and a considerable degree of internationalization.
Source: "Sources of resilience in the computer and software industries in France", Industry and Innovation, Sydney, Aug 2001; Hiroatsu Nohara, Eric Verdier

In 2001, 440 companies are operating in software and computing services in France, employing 180 000 persons. Revenues of software and computing services were 21.4 billion Euros in 2001, with a 13.5 % increase from 2000. The leading sectors are CRM, SCM, outsourcing, embedded software and information systems security. Among European countries, France and Spain have the highest growth rates, followed by UK, Italy, Benelux around 10 %, and Germany and Northern Europe countries around 5 %. This is mainly due to the lag of the IT sector in France and to the moderate “Dot.com bubble”.
Source: Syntec informatique In spite of the crisis affecting the new economy, a remarkable number of French Internet start-ups continue to do well. According to a 1999 survey of 84 start-ups, about half displayed a growth rate of more than 100 percent and only 22 percent had negative growth. Moreover, their rate of survival remains higher than the national average of 50 percent for all firms in France. The only challenge experienced by three-fourth of these organizations remains to obtain the capital necessary for their development. The two principal causes of bankruptcy among start-ups are lack of capital, often due to an inexperienced management team, and payment delays by major clients.
Source: US Department of Commerce


Sources

Sources of resilience in the computer and software industries in France, Industry and Innovation, Sydney, Aug 2001; Hiroatsu Nohara, Eric Verdier
Syntec
US Foreign trade office

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