Romania’s IT sector will end 2006 with a strengthened track record of continued growth and expansion, announced Romania’s General Director for Export Promotion, Minister of Commerce & Economy, Costin Lianu. Lianu noted significant market activity was generated by global IT companies entering Romania’s thriving market.

“As the fastest growing IT market in Europe, Romania is rapidly becoming a favored destination for IT investments,” said Lianu. “Our 2006 investment record demonstrates the optimism global IT companies have about the new business opportunities, as well as the quality and availability of the labor force, the level of education and the competitive labor costs offered by the Romanian market.”

In addition to new market entrants, many market leaders already present in Romania have announced plans for acquisitions of local IT companies and expanding existing business operations. The latest developments in Romania IT in 2006 include:

* Adecco Group acquired Romanian company IP Devel. IP Devel provides advanced IT outsourcing services. Adecco S.A. is a Fortune Global 500 company and a global leader in HR services. Adecco’s plans for its new Romanian acquisition include creating a cutting edge competency center in embedded systems and software testing solutions.
* Microsoft announced plans for opening a new service center in Bucharest. The new service center will begin operations with approximately 100 employees, and will be tasked with providing consulting services to customers across the Europe, Africa and the Middle East (EMEA) region.
* Hewlett-Packard opened a new business process outsourcing center in Bucharest. The new center will be tasked with providing high-value services, such as order management support, sales force support, back-end support and credit and collection services to clients and partners across the globe.
* Infineon Technologies opened a new development center in Bucharest. The staff of 60 employees will focus on intelligent power semiconductors for automotive and industrial applications. The new center will play a significant role in the company’s global operations, and is expected to conduct research and development efforts in security controllers for chip cards.
* Adobe Systems acquired InterAKT, a Romanian software company which develops extensions for Adobe’s core group of products. Adobe believes its acquisition will enhance existing product lines, including Macromedia Dreamweaver and Adobe Flex. The new development center will also provide Adobe with greater access to and expertise in the Eastern European market.
* SAP, worldwide leader for business software, opened a near-shore consultancy center in Romania in 2006. The new delivery center will implement SAP projects across the EMEA region. SAP estimates the total investment at four million Euros by the end of 2007 and says it’s comparable to a similar center in India.
* Siemens opened its second software development and research center in Romania in 2006. The first Siemens research center in Romania was opened in 2001 in Brasov. The new center is in Cluj Napoca, and is expected to double in size by the end of 2006.
* IBM now employs over 500 people in the company’s IT support centers across Romania. The company recently announced that in addition to two existing facilities in Bucharest, IBM plans to open several additional centers across the country. This move could drive the number of employees to several thousands in the near future.
* In May, 2006, Oracle opened its new services and technology centers headquarters in Bucharest. Oracle centers provide around-the-clock support and consulting services for the company’s customers and partners worldwide, with a particular emphasis on the EMEA region. There are currently 10 Oracle Centers in Romania, employing more than 350 specialists, and covering global product support for Oracle product users worldwide, support for Oracle partners in EMEA region, software development for Oracle, support renewals services, and Oracle University Sales for the EMEA region.
* Transaction Systems Architects (TSA) recently opened its new division in Romania. The company announced the opening of a new division in Iasi and plans to hire 50 software developers initially, expecting to grow four-fold by the end of 2007. TSA is a supplier of software services and solutions for e-commerce clients. Its new division will be developing software solutions for ATMs and point-of-sale products.

Romania’s strong showing in the IT investments is supported by a recent report from AT Kearney, a global management consulting firm. AT Kearney’s 2005 Foreign Direct Investment Confidence Index ranked Romania among the top 25 most attractive FDI locations in the world. Lianu believes the positive trends will continue with the upcoming accession to the EU on January 1, 2007, and adds that new entrants and investors into IT industry are expected to follow in the footsteps of global market leaders.