Y2K

John K Clark (johnkc@well.com)
Thu, 9 Apr 1998 09:20:03 -0700 (PDT)


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- From news@daily.informationweek.com Thu Apr 9 1998

______Year 2000 Efforts: Big Problem, Slow Going_______

Two surveys released yesterday give mixed reviews to
worldwide year 2000 efforts. The results of Cap Gemini's
ongoing year 2000 survey of 128 companies show corporate
America finally facing the magnitude of the year 2000
problem. But Gartner Group's year 2000 survey reveals that a
sizable number of users and vendors are not taking the year
2000 problem as seriously as they should.

Since Cap Gemini's last survey, released in December, the
number of companies with full-fledged year 2000 strategies
jumped from 20% to 60%, according to the most recent survey.
The majority of the IT managers polled said they grossly
underestimated their year 2000 budgets; some said year 2000
spending will exceed $100 million. Also, 20% of the managers
said their companies have deferred new IT development to re-
allocate resources for year 2000 work.

On the other hand, one-quarter of the 6,000 companies and
government agencies surveyed worldwide by Gartner Group have
yet to start any year 2000 compliance efforts, according to
survey results released yesterday at the Gartner Group
Predicts conference in San Diego. Even more startling: Half
of all survey respondents have no plans to test their year
2000 efforts after they've completed them.

Lou Marcoccio, a Gartner Group analyst, cited about 200
legal disputes involving year 2000 issues. He said 93% of
those disputes involve end users complaining that vendors
are not adhering to contracts and are going back on earlier
promises to provide free year 2000 fixes. A year ago,
Marcoccio adds, only 1% of all vendors charged for year 2000
fixes; today, 29% charge. The legal actions are not reaching
the courts, but are being settled privately, according to
Marcoccio, who says that two settlements were recently
reached, one for $8.5 million, another for $2.2 million,
both in favor of the end users.--Hakhi Alakhun El and Bruce Caldwell

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