Tech Vendors That May Not Survive 2009

We all know that the global economy is not doing well right now. Very few days go by without some bad news hitting the wire. This article (if it can be called an “article”… it’s more of a flash presentation) may be a signal that we’re going a bit too far though:

In the Channel Insider 2009 Market Pulse Survey, we asked solution providers which vendors they thought would go out of business or be acquired in 2009. The results may shock you. Based on their perceptions and predictions, the following are the vendors that made the going list of those that won’t be here in 2010.

The list follows:

10. VMWare
9. Symantec
8. Citrix
7. Sun
6. AMD
6. CA
5. Salesforce.com
4. McAfee
3. Checkpoint
2. NetApp
1. Novell

To be honest, I think the downside to the current economic situation is likely to be longer and deeper than many are predicting. To suggest that the companies above, however, will be gone in 11 months is in many cases ludicrous. There are a couple of them that could survive that duration on legacy contracts alone; without making a single sale. It is possible that many will get acquired, as the companies that do have cash on hand will find many bargains to be found. Acquisitions happen in all economic situations after all. When the news gets this negative it’s often a sign that a bottom may be near. I’m not convinced of that yet, but I think this quarter will give us a pretty good indication of what 2009 will bring.

–jeremy