MANILA, Philippines -- A study by Singapore IT research firm Springboard said ?green information technology" services in the Asia Pacific region will grow to $2 billion by 2011, a report showed.

Springboard?s study, titled "Asia Pacific Green IT Services Market -- The Budding Greens," said Australia would represent the biggest opportunity for green IT services, followed by India and China.
The report said green IT services were valued at $251 million in 2007.

Green IT services includes a slew of new cost-saving and environment-friendly programs that reduce the amount of energy consumption of IT equipment and maximizing usage, such as the use of virtualization and data center management.

Traditional green IT services include proper recycling and disposal of out-of-cycle equipment.

The report said that while infrastructure services comprise the largest component of market with a 58 percent share in 2007, consulting services are highly significant in the green IT services marketplace, which would reach a size of $546 million in 2011.

The research company noted that green IT strategies will boost opportunities for companies offering data center and infrastructure applications services.

IT companies were advised to work with government agencies for realistic regulation of green IT agendas among industries.

Springboard Research Vice President of Services Phil Hassey said the study points to potential market for green IT service providers, which can leverage on the huge IT businesses across Asia Pacific.

"Vendors should ensure that their Green IT solutions are more than "window dressing" of existing solutions for a premium. Green IT adoption will not go into the mainstream until the vendors showcase clear cost savings and a transformational outcome to the enterprise users," Hassey said.