Associations Focus: City Hall Spending Big
Jul 1, 2005 12:00 PM
State/local governments spend $1.2 billion annually on audiovisual products and services.
For a larger image, click here.
ICIA estimates that spending by state and local governments in the United States for AV systems is $1.2 billion annually. Additionally, this number is projected to grow as much as 12 percent each year, for the next three years. This projection comes as governments trend to increase spending on such products as flat panel displays, projectors, videoconferencing products, and AV recording devices for education, public safety, emergency services, IT and homeland security.
Findings are published in ICIA’s 2004 AV Trends and Opportunities Study: State and Local Government. This study sizes the U.S. state and local government AV market, examines how AV is used in government today, and projects future growth opportunities for AV providers. Primary focus is given to those who supply the government with solutions for command and control centers, public services, transportation monitoring, training, collaborative conferencing, information displays, remote control monitoring, courtrooms, city or council meetings, and more.
Local governments, including county, district and city, account for more than $950 million of total state/local government AV spending. Moving forward, all levels of spending for AV are expected to increase in this category. A large majority of AV decision makers and planners at the state and city levels (75 percent and 65 percent of respondents, respectively) anticipate a substantial increase in AV spending over the next 12 to 36 months. While 40 percent of county/district level planners estimate increased spending over the next 12 to 36 months.
The demand for AV products and services is highest across the following state and local government departments: education, public safety, emergency services, police, homeland security, and IT. The most common AV product purchases for these departments are cable/connectors because of their necessity and shorter lifetime. Audio/video recording equipment purchases are also strong because they support training, which is a top application for state and local governments. Display products, especially thin displays, continue their popularity in public use with projectors and displays becoming de rigueur for videoconferencing and streaming video of live events.
State governments have the highest AV budgets with 80 percent spending $100,000 or more per year. Counties/districts are next, with 50 percent spending $90,000 annually. Of all city respondents, 35 percent have an annual AV budget of $50,000 to $100,000, 20 percent a budget of $100,000 to $250,000, and 30 percent a budget of less than $10,000.
“The study demonstrates that the government market is the leader in discretionary budgeting for AV technologies and services in the $19 billion U.S. AV industry,” says Randal A. Lemke, Ph.D., executive director of ICIA. “We also observe that government spending will rise to meet the continued need for audiovisual products as a means of getting information to the public, communicating between agencies, and ensuring public safety and training.”
ICIA commissioned Acclaro Growth Partners to conduct the state/local study and learn more about the decision makers and purchasing process for AV products and services in non-Federal, U.S. government markets. The study was conducted through individual interviews and online surveys in which it questioned AV end users and purchasers in state and local governments nationwide. Others included in the survey were pro AV manufacturers, dealers, integrators, and consultants.
The state/local study follows ICIA’s 2004 benchmark study defining the $19 billion AV industry in North America. In future studies, ICIA will examine emerging markets for AV, such as healthcare, to identify trends and opportunities for AV solutions providers. To learn more the 2004 AV Trends and Opportunities Study: State and Local Government and ICIA’s other studies, see www.infocomm.org/marketintelligence.
For more information about ICIA and InfoComm, visit www.infocomm.org.
