Due to extraordinary conditions in the ITO services market, Quarterly Analytics will not publish price data for Q1 2026. Below, we answer the most frequently asked questions about this decision.

Why is Quarterly Analytics not publishing price data for Q1 2026?
The ITO services market is currently experiencing an unusually high level of commercial uncertainty due to a sharp increase in hardware procurement costs. As a result, the market has become so volatile that we have taken the exceptional decision to suspend the publication of new price data for one quarter. This is the first time in the 13-year history of Quarterly Analytics that we have taken such a step.

As a consequence, unit prices and price indices for Q1 2026 will not be included in the June research package.

What makes the current situation different?
Hardware procurement costs have increased significantly over a short period and continue to show an upward trend. Service providers that need to refresh existing hardware or invest in additional capacity are therefore facing substantially higher costs and may need to increase the prices of their services. At the same time, providers with available capacity acquired before the recent price increases may still be able to deliver services at existing market prices.

As a result, the impact of rising hardware costs differs significantly across providers and may not be reflected in market prices immediately. 

In a market where unit prices for IT infrastructure services have historically trended downward, isolated price increases are not sufficient to conclude that market prices have risen. Such a conclusion requires clear evidence that providers, as a whole, are no longer able to deliver services at the current benchmark price. Only then can it be said that the market has shifted to a new price level.

Individual price increases are not, in themselves, sufficient to demonstrate a change in market pricing. While they may serve as early indicators of a broader market shift, confirmation requires sufficient evidence that the trend is both widespread and sustained.

Is this a permanent change?
No. This is an exceptional and temporary measure taken solely in response to the current market conditions. Our objective is to ensure that the price data we publish remains as reliable, robust, and useful as possible.

When will price data be published again?
Publication of price data will resume with the September research package, which will include price data for Q2 2026. Until then, we will continue to collect and analyse market data to ensure that the published price data provides an accurate reflection of current market conditions.

What should customers and service providers who use the index for price adjustments do?
We recommend that customers and service providers continue to use the values from the most recently published quarter until new price data becomes available.

As mentioned, this is a first for Quarterly Analytics. However, as always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at qa@zangenberg.biz.