Uncertainties That Might Affect These Trends

There are a number of areas of uncertainty that might affect the progress of the ICT sector that we note in this strategic assessment of the ICT industry. These are uncertainties that arise from radical and unforeseen changes in technology, the economic system and society. Uncertainties, by their very nature, cannot be insured against, but do need to be recognised as they will influence the scenario that provides the context for the strategic decisions. Examples of uncertainties may include:

Major ICT disaster constraining innovation and growth and leading to increased regulation
An unforeseen downturn in Western economies stemming from various political, environmental and economic factors
Acceleration of the impacts of climate change on South-East Australia limiting growth
A private equity takeover of many of the large ICT companies
Radical and unforeseen technology breakthroughs in processing power and storage
Breakthroughs in the harnessing of processing power to produce order of magnitude increasing in intelligent systems that can be developed
Hacker attacks reduce confidence in the Internet
A slump in ICT and eBusiness stocks