UK Usability market worth more than £200 million by end of 2008

The UK Usability market will grow by an estimated 20% in 2008 to a value of £214 million, according to research published this week by e-consultancy. The continued growth of this sector is the result of a growing commitment within organisations towards usability and user experience, according to E-consultancy’s 2008 Usability and Accessibility Buyer’s Guide.

E-consultancy’s Head of Research Linus Gregoriadis said: “The growth of this market reflects the on-going buoyancy of the digital sector and the strategic importance of this channel within businesses. The agencies and consultancies profiled in this report continue to report high levels of demand for their services while companies recruit and expand their own in-house teams.”

In previous buyer’s guides, E-consultancy has estimated that the digital usability market was worth £178 million in 2007 and, before that, £148 million in 2006. The value of this sector (which includes the accessibility market) will break through the £200 million mark this year. Although the broader economic outlook remains gloomy, there are many positive signs for the market, including rapidly increasing knowledge of the benefits of user-centred design among UK organisations.

Gregoriadis added: “A growing desire for more usable websites from public and private organisations is not the only source of growth for the industry. Many usability experts are transferring their skills to non-web activities and are already finding them to be a significant source of income.”

Headline market trends:
-) Increased competition in digital marketing drives investment.
-) Awareness of the importance of usability moves beyond the web.
-) More organisations embrace user-centred design.
-) Accessibility becomes 'hygiene factor' rather than separate discipline.

Associated Link: Usability and Accessibility Buyer's Guide 2008

Study: Mobile Web sites need Improvement
Source: CNET, 13 October 2008
 
A new study suggests that the usability of many mobile Web sites still needs improvement.

Better Usability makes Online Backup more Appealing
Source: UN, 11 October 2008
 
Repeat after me: "Backup via the Internet is for everybody."

IBM Task Modeler version 6 now Available
Source: Unknown, 10 October 2008
 
The latest release of IBM Task Modeler is now available for download. This includes many new features to support efficient and collaborative task analysis and synthesis.

Caroline's Corner: Design to Read - Designing for People who do not Read easily
Source: Caroline Jarrett, 9 October 2008
 
Reading is a skill many of us take for granted. Chances are that if you’re reading this, you’re one of the lucky ones who read easily.

Bill Buxton to change Microsoft from within
Source: The Register, 8 October 2008
 
"Last year Steve Ballmer said to 85,000 employees 'If you don’t change and you don’t go in this direction, we’re dead, and I don’t want to die.' I wanted to go hug him when he said that."

New Report: Innovative Marketing in the Digital World
Source: E-consultancy, 7 October 2008
 
A new report from E-consultancy provides a distillation of ideas and suggestions provided by digital marketing experts.

Linking Industry with Academia
Source: unknown, 6 October 2008
 
Customer experience research consultancy, fhios, based in London, has just launched an innovative internship programme, aimed primarily at postgraduate students.

Online Travel Booking: What influences Consumers?
Source: Webcredible, 4 October 2008
 
What influences consumers when booking a holiday? How can travel companies offer the best user experience?

Getting the Word out
Source: UN, 3 October 2008
 
I SAID, I'M ON THE TRAIN... Voice recognition technology can now translate all those pesky garbled voicemails into manageable text messages.

Mobile hardware outpaces Software and User Capabilities
Source: ComputerWorld, 2 October 2008
 
The main issue dissuading users from employing all the capabilities of their mobile devices is the complexity involved in operating them.