Such potential changes don't trouble Jim Goodnight, co-founder and CEO of business-intelligence and data-analysis software vendor SAS Institute Inc. He's focusing on what new opportunities lie in the near future. He points out, for example, that SAS has a growing business in anti-money-laundering software and other applications customers need to comply with the USA Patriot Act--all unforeseen before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
"The IT industry needs to keep a fairly short horizon. Our horizon is about two years," Goodnight says. "We make it a practice not to have these big five-year plans. If you do, you're going to get about halfway through, and the world is going to change."
Continue to the sidebar: Industry Leaders Look To Software's Future
Illustration by Brian Stauffer
Subsea cable alternatives can provide a level of comfort for those concerned about disruptions. Realistically, they will continue to play a small, but critical role in the short term.
Maintaining existing network infrastructures often incurs huge technical debt before newer technologies are adopted over time.
Amid ongoing regional uncertainties, telecom infrastructure in the Middle East has expand to include terrestrial low-latency network infrastructure, which offers resilience and agility in navigating political complexities without relying solely on undersea networks.
