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Finland ranked second globally in IT sector competitiveness

18/09/2009

Finland has the second most competitive IT sector in the world, according to a newly published study by The Economist Intelligence Unit. Entitled “Resilience amid turmoil: Benchmarking IT industry competitiveness 2009”, and sponsored by the Business Software Alliance (BSA), the study compares 66 countries on the extent to which they support the competitiveness of IT firms.

Finland’s high ranking is explained in the study by the country’s robust IT-infrastructure, strong support for technology R&D, and the Finnish IT firms’ record of patenting innovations. Finland is also ranked best for its overall business environment. The study notes that the high-ranking countries, including Finland, are characterized by start-up friendly environments, a network of venture capitalists and entrepreneurial culture.

According to the study, the major factors that enable IT firms to compete effectively include the quality of the local technology infrastructure, the availability and quality of IT talent, the innovation environment, the legal regime, the overall business environment, and the government’s technology policy.

This the third annual study into IT sector competitiveness by The Economist Intelligence Unit. Last year Finland was ranked at number 13. This year’s top ranking country was the United States.