In 2013, IT buyers will be looking for stability and ways to prepare for the next five years in their business cycle, says Ovum.

In a new report, the independent technology analyst firm looks at the phenomenon of IT services bundling and how it will influence the IT market in 2013.

Jens Butler, Principal Analyst, IT Services at Ovum says: “The fact that we live in very uncertain times makes investment decision-making even more difficult. With continuing instability across the global markets and even in locations with historically robust growth such as China and India, the outlook for IT services in 2013 is unpredictable.”

“Enterprises will be looking for greater reliability in their IT usage and, as a consequence, seeking stability, capability and accessibility among their external service providers.” In line with recent trends, Ovum’s Bundling Index points to an increasing desire for longer term commitments and extended-scope outsourcing engagements.

In 2013, the push to fill out portfolios, especially across some of the newer technology arenas such as mobility, analytics, social and cloud, will continue to grow and a multitude of vendors will look to take advantage of this desired technology adoption, even if it means looking to a single supplier to deliver these services.

For 2013, Butler advises enterprises to ensure that bundled services do not become yet another “black box” style engagement, and recommends that they invest in governance experience and solid vendor management models.

Butler also recommends that vendors broaden their existing portfolios to prepare for the potential upswing in late 2013.