Spending by enterprises on grid technologies will climb into the billions of dollars by 2008, according to a new market research study by Insight Research Corporation.

According to Insight Research's study, Grid Computing: A Vertical Market Perspective 2003-2008, the technology will likely form the foundation of a fourth wave in IT, and will present new opportunities for the long-suffering telecom industry. A grid is defined as a form of distributed system wherein computing and information resources are shared across networks. Worldwide grid spending is forecasted to grow at a substantial 81 percent, from $250 million in 2003 to $4.89 billion in 2008.

Insight's market analysis examined the implications of grid computing on telecommunications carriers. As enterprise customers enable grids on their existing corporate networks, they will require new services from telecom providers to manage additional grid traffic. Service providers should view grid and on-demand computing technologies as drivers of demand for telecom services.

"The telecommunications network is essential to the success of grid computing," says Robert Rosenberg, Insight Research President. "Up until now, the focus of grid computing has been on the computational aspect rather than on the network utility aspect," Rosenberg continues. "Grids require bandwidth to scale. Unless network service providers find a way to offer value-added services related to computing as a utility, they may be relegated to a commodity role."

Grid Computing: A Vertical Market Perspective examines grid spending by 14 vertical industries categorized by the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) system. Currently, a vast majority of grid spending is in manufacturing and financial applications. By 2008, financial applications and professional business services will account for the highest expenditures, and the healthcare segment will have the fastest growth rate.