IDC's 12th Annual European IT Forum Will Prepare Attendees for the IT Market Rebound

"The rebound is coming," said John Gantz, Chief Research Officer, IDC. "We've always known that it was only a question of timing and have to look no further back than the rebound that followed the recession of 1991 for an example of this. However, as we enter the first months of economic recovery, gradually translating into business profitability and increased IT spending, we need to spot the leading short-term opportunities which will give us a head start on our competitors."

IDC predicts a gradual, uneven rebound from the second half of 2002 despite the challenging business conditions that have persisted. The bottom of the slowdown has clearly been left behind and IDC sees clear indications for a return to previous growth levels in many market sectors by 2003.

IDC's European IT Forum provides prescriptive advice to executives responsible for preparing their businesses for this turnaround. Key focus areas include:

1. New user buying behavior
2. Channel requirements and vendor success factors and offerings 3. A sharpening of technology and architectural changes in everything from servers and storage to telecom infrastructures, IT services, software and ebusiness.

Key Speakers
The following keynote speakers are scheduled to present at this year's European IT forum
·    Lester Thurow, Professor of Management and Economics, Sloan School of
Management, MIT
·    Nicholas Negroponte, Founder and Director, MIT's Media Lab
·    Michael Earl, Dean, Templeton College, University of Oxford
·    Don Tapscott, Author of "Digital Capital" and Co-Founder of Digital 4Sight
·    Patrick McGovern, Founder and Chairman, IDG
·    John Gantz, Chief Research Officer, IDC
·    Jean Paul Fitoussi, President, Observatoire Français des Conjonctures
Economiques
·    Peter Cochrane, ConceptLabs Co-Founder and Former Chief Technologist of BT

The event will be based around plenary sessions focusing on strategic themes, as well as parallel sessions which will concentrate on key business opportunities driving the IT market rebound. This forum will also see the return of the Research Pavilion - where attendees will be able to network with IDC analysts - and the introduction of the Guru Labs - interactive workshops where a limited number of participants will be able to brainstorm on critical issues with the keynote speakers.

For more information or to register, visit http://emea.idc.com/itforum02.

Editor's Note: Press registration for this event is complimentary - for press passes, please contact either Mathew Heath on +44 20 8987 7107/mheath@idc.com or Daniela Sarti, Associate Manager, Brodeur ImageTime on +39 02 20562509/dsarti@imagetime.it. IDC speaker interview requests are also being processed in advance of IDC's European IT Forum by Mathew Heath and Daniela Sarti. Advance scheduling is recommended because space and availability of experts are limited.

About IDC
IDC is the foremost global market intelligence and advisory firm helping clients gain insight into technology and ebusiness trends to develop sound business strategies. Using a combination of rigorous primary research, in-depth analysis, and client interaction, IDC forecasts worldwide markets and trends to deliver dependable service and client advice. More than 700 analysts in 43 countries provide global research with local content. IDC's customers comprise the world's leading IT suppliers, IT organizations, ebusiness companies, and the financial community. Additional information can be found at www.idc.com.

IDC is a division of IDG, the world's leading IT media, research and exposition company. # # #

All product and company names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

For more information, contact:
Mathew Heath
+44 (0) 20 8987 7107
mheath@idc.com

Daniela Sarti, Brodeur ImageTime
+39 02 20562509
dsarti@imagetime.it