While much of the talk about Australia’s imminent carbon tax has focused on industry and consumer cost pressures and other negatives, for the channel it presents business opportunities.
“From a channel point of view it’s like a storm in a teacup with the sea being carbon,” said Gartner IT channels analyst Neil McMurchy.
It would lead to more complexity for businesses, he said, which in turn presented opportunities for technology companies including resellers and integrators to
market solutions to better manage that complexity.
“Clearly increased reporting requirements lead to increased complexity which almost inevitably creates more demand for ICT stuff,” McMurchy said.
“I find it hard to see a serious negative from a channel business respective [from the carbon tax].
“Increased complexity generally leads to increased opportunity.”
But industry groups have raised concerns about the risks of a carbon tax adding expensive and obstructive layers of complexity on to business and employment contracts due to new uncertainties around cost and accountability.
What impact this has on tenders and contracts within the ICT industry, and the many contractors it employs, remains to be seen.
But as far as compliance with new regulations, Ovum research director Steve Hodgkinson says there’s money to be made in power conservation.
“We expect that the plan, assuming it proceeds to legislation, will lead to increased opportunities for companies that specialise in the software and systems needed to manage energy use efficiently and to report on compliance under the new carbon pricing arrangements,” Hodgkinson said.
The carbon tax is expected to reignite interest in green technology within the ICT market, an area which has languished for the past five years.
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