This IDC study analyzes the customer relationship management (CRM), enterprise resource management (ERM), and (SCM) markets in Japan between January and June 2005, and provides preliminary forecast from 2006 to 2010. The size of the IT solution market in Japan in 2005 is expected to be 417.6 billion yen for CRM, 801.1 billion yen for ERM and 270.2 billion yen for SCM, based on the actual market performance between January to June 2005. The CRM solution market is expected to increase at an average rate compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.3% to reach 516.4 billion yen in 2010. The ERM market is expected to increase at a CAGR of 3.0% to reach 930.6 yen billion and the SCM market is expected to increase at a CAGR of 2.6% to reach 306.7 billion yen in 2010.

"Solution vendors should clarify the scope of their solutions and emphasize their strength to user companies more clearly, and that they should also consider active alliance with other vendors in solution areas where they are less competitive," says Hisashi Kajita, group manager, Software Research, IDC Japan.