Sales of non-video game software in the US jumped by 15 per cent to $3.3 billion (£1.65 billion), after six years of stagnant growth according to market research firm NPD.Analysts have cited the simultaneous release of Windows Vista and Office 2007, Apple's Leopard as well as Adobe's latest productivity suite drove up demand leading NPD analyst Chris Swenson to refer to the event as "a perfect storm".
"The simultaneous release of Windows Vista and Office 2007, the non-games software market had its best year in U.S. retail since 1999," added Swenson.
Growth in US software sales had been relatively flat since 2000, however, 2007's figures will have provided a much need boost to retailers struggling with an anticipated recession.
The releases of Vista and Leopard drove growth in the operating system market by 58 per cent. Office 2007 and Adobe's latest products helped business software rise by 41 per cent, and the imaging and graphics market grow by ten per cent.
Office 2007 itself accounted for 17 per cent of sales in terms of value during 2007.
However, not all software sectors grew. Both sales of education and personal productivity software declined.
Source: Forbes.com
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