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Published on August 24, 2007

The country was given a score of 31.9 in IT industry competitiveness, while Japan comes first in the Asia-Pacific at 72.7. Japan is followed by South Korea at 67.2, Australia at 66.5, Taiwan at 65.8, Singapore at 63.1, New Zealand at 57.5, Hong Kong at 53.4 and Malaysia at 34.9.

The United States is on top of the list globally.

The research - conducted by the EIU and sponsored by the Business Software Alliance (BSA) - reveals that major factors enabling a country to have strong competitiveness in the IT industry are IT skills, globally accredited IT infrastructure, and a lucid legal environment to protect against violations. All this involves collaboration and support from the government sectors.

Countries such as the US, Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom with thriving IT industries are seen as world hubs for IT. They score well on these various enabling factors.

BSA's director of software policy for Asia, Seow Hiong Goh, said that for Thailand to improve its IT competitiveness globally, the EIU study found the key areas needing improvement were enhancing the development of IT human capital and investing further in IT infrastructure. Greater collaboration among IT industry communities and higher education institutions can help develop up-to-date curricula that will better serve the needs of the industry.