OFFICIAL PROGRAM

Opportunities and Challenges

SWEDEN’S ICT MARKET

SWEDEN’S ICT MARKET

This report outlines the current state of the Swedish ICT

market and examines in more detail various sub-sectors,

which are growing and are likely to provide opportunities for

Swiss ICT companies.

This report also lists trade events and professional

associations which may help Swiss companies to gain a

greater understanding of the Swedish ICT market and

identify potential partners and customers.

Finally, the report examines regulatory issues, risk and

success factors and suggests market access strategies.

Using this report, Swiss ICT companies should be better

prepared to identify potential opportunities and strategies to

enter the Swedish market.

Language: English

Number of pages: 48

Author: Gunnar Niblaeus

Other architectural Reports: Are you interested in other

architectural Reports for other sectors and countries? Please

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Contents

1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY _______________________ 5

2. INTRODUCTION _____________________________ 6

3. SWEDISH ICT MARKET ANALYSIS _____________ 7

3.1. Overview _______________________________ 7

3.1.1. Historical review _________________________ 7

3.1.2. General characteristics _____________________ 8

3.1.3. Swedish regional ICT clusters ________________ 9

3.2. The market in 2013 _______________________ 10

3.3. SWOT analysis ___________________________ 11

3.4. Future trends across the ICT sector ____________ 12

3.5. ICT segments ___________________________ 13

3.5.1. IT Outsourcing _________________________ 13

3.5.2. ERP Systems __________________________ 14

3.5.3. Communication services __________________ 15

3.5.4. Industrial IT ___________________________ 16

3.5.5. Mobile applications _______________________17

3.5.6. Internet of Things _______________________ 18

3.5.7. IT Security ____________________________ 19

3.5.8. E-Government _________________________ 20

3.5.9. E-health _____________________________ 22

3.5.10. Cloud services _________________________ 24

3.5.11. IT entertainment _______________________ 25

3.6. Statistical data __________________________ 26

3.7. Key Swedish market entry points ______________ 33

4. ACCESSING THE SWEDISH ICT MARKET _______ 35

4.1. Trade events ____________________________ 35

4.2. Start-up infrastructure _____________________ 35

4.3. Regulatory issues _________________________ 38

4.3.1. The principle of public access to official documents 39

4.3.2. Public Procurement ______________________ 39

4.3.3. The Personal Data Act ____________________ 40

4.3.4. The Patient Data Act _____________________ 40

4.3.5. Archiving accounting data _________________ 41

5. RECOMMENDATIONS _______________________ 41

5.1. Background and recent developments ___________ 41

5.2. Target sub-sectors and market opportunities ______ 41

5.3. Market entry strategies _____________________ 42

5.4. Market and trading risk factors _______________ 43

5.5. Success factors __________________________ 43

5.6. Conclusions ____________________________ 44

6. USEFUL CONTACTS ________________________ 44

6.1. Government organizations __________________ 44

6.2. Trade, membership and professional organizations __ 45

6.3. Regulatory bodies ________________________ 46

List of tables

Table 1: Networked Readiness Index 2013 _________________________________________________________ 8 Table 2: ICT-related regional clusters ____________________________________________________________ 9 Table 3: IT Outsourcing actors ________________________________________________________________ 13 Table 4: ERP Systems actors _________________________________________________________________ 14 Table 5: Communication services actors _________________________________________________________ 15 Table 6: Industrial IT actors _________________________________________________________________ 16 Table 7: Mobile application actors _____________________________________________________________ 18 Table 8: Internet of Things actors ______________________________________________________________ 19 Table 9: IT Security actors___________________________________________________________________ 19 Table 10: E-Government actors _______________________________________________________________ 21 Table 11: E-health actors ____________________________________________________________________ 24 Table 12: Cloud services actors ________________________________________________________________ 25 Table 13: IT Entertainment actors _____________________________________________________________ 26 Table 14: Trade events _____________________________________________________________________ 35

1. Executive Summary

With a long tradition in international business relations and a generally open and curious attitude among its people, Sweden

offers an ideal environment for the development and early commercialization of new products and services, especially in the

ICT sector. The country not only ranks top in numerous business-related indicators, but also in “softer” areas such as quality of

life.

ICT plays an important role in Sweden, repeatedly having been identified as a critical field with enormous future potential. As

one of the fastest growing sectors in the country, the dynamic Swedish ICT industry disposes of a vast business potential for

innovative firms, meeting sophisticated users and demanding customers here, who are the drivers behind world-leading

solutions.

This dynamism comes with an ongoing consolidation of companies, many of which have been sold to foreign corporations,

which employ about 40% of the ICT workforce today. Foreign companies interested in doing business in Sweden come upon a

market which is growing but still graspable, regulated by competitive and transparent corporate taxation, which offers easy-to-

find access to information and key persons and constitutes a natural entry point and hub for the Nordic region. Location-wise,

Kista Science City in Stockholm lends itself as an ideal entrance point to the market, being the leading hotspot for

telecommunication and IT in the world.

For Swiss companies, entering the Swedish market is especially attractive due to the significant similarities that Sweden and

Switzerland share in mind-set and business structure, as well as the strength of the brand “Swiss made”. Interesting

opportunities also arise from the fact that many small companies in Sweden are in need of capital and other growth triggers.

Furthermore, Swiss knowhow could meet demand from Swedish banks that often have aging ICT systems. Not least, business

relations between Sweden and Switzerland have been brought to a new level through the conclusion of the Gripen Deal whose

offset business affects large economic fields.

The Swedish ICT market is particularly interesting for Swiss firms that are active in one of the following

areas, which have been identified as “pockets of growth” and important general market drivers within the

sector:

Mobility

Cloud Services

Big Data

Social Features

In addition, the Swedish government has recently taken strong measures to promote e-Government and e-health solutions by

initiating respective national strategies as well as authorizing increased public spending.

Although Sweden has a strong national ICT market itself, there are plentiful opportunities for Swiss

companies to profit from the above-mentioned similarities, the stable political framework and the positive

investment climate.

2. Introduction

Sweden has a central position in Northern Europe and is the largest market in the Nordic region, which includes Sweden,

Denmark, Finland and Norway. Sweden has, as the other Nordic countries, a stable economy. The economic growth in 2013 is

relatively strong, especially compared to the weak European surroundings. The Nordic countries with a population of 25

million people constitute the 12th largest economy in the world1.

Sweden has a long tradition of international business relations. This has led to an open and curious attitude among people and

underlines the importance of language skills. Sweden ranks in the top in many business-related indicators but also in more

“soft” areas as quality of life. Thus the country is an attractive location for international companies, not least as a natural hub

for the Nordic region.

Specifically in the ICT sector, Sweden offers an ideal environment for development and early commercialization of new

products and services. Demanding customers and sophisticated users are the drivers for world-leading solutions in this

growing yet graspable market.

This report is a description of the Swedish information and communication technology (ICT) market with the purpose to

provide a tool for Swiss small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to identify and evaluate opportunities to enter this

market. This specific purpose is reflected in the content and scope of the report.

The first part is a general summary of the ICT market in Sweden. It includes a more detailed description of some selected

segments. The remaining part is more focused on opportunities and guidelines to get access to this market.

Information has mainly been collected from open sources. The source is stated in tables and figures and otherwise if applicable.

General descriptions and conclusions can also include the author’s opinions and know-how gathered from experience and a

network of persons with relevant background.

1 Business Sweden

3. Swedish ICT Market Analysis

3.1. OVERVIEW

In order to fully understand the current market, it could be useful to start with a retrospective. These are a few highlights that

have had a strong influence on the situation today.

3.1.1. Historical review

Ericsson and Telia (Televerket)

Ericsson is a global market leader in telecommunication with a long history in Sweden. The governmental authority for

telecommunications, Televerket, (later after privatization Telia and nowadays TeliaSonera) and Ericsson had a long history of

strong co-operation in development and implementation of new technology for telecommunication. This was also the case in

the development of mobile communication in 1970s and 1980s. Phones, base stations and other needed equipment were

developed by Ericsson with Televerket as a strong sponsor. Together with other Nordic countries, a standard frequency band

for mobile communication was defined and established. The standard was called NMT and has been replaced by GSM later on.

The outcome of this was a market leadership for Ericsson and a world leading infrastructure for mobile communication in

Sweden, covering almost the whole country, including remote areas. In fact, the long experience within the areas of telecom

and wireless has made Sweden an attractive centre for ICT-related R&D for many international companies as Apple, Ericsson,

Google, Huawei, Skype, Sony and many others.

The Internet-hype

In the late 1990s, Internet was established mainly as a source of information by search engines and rather primitive home

pages for companies and organizations. However, as the communication speed was improving and the costs were reduced, the

potential to create new business models became clear, primarily in the US and Scandinavia. The early success of Amazon.com

was perhaps the most important source of inspiration.

This also initiated a large number of start-ups in Sweden with all kinds of business ideas around the Internet. With talented

and visionary leaders, these companies attracted public interest and capital. The business logic was very much to reach a

dominant position in the market as quickly as possible. Speed was essential, costs were not. “Burning rate” became an

important indicator, meaning how quickly the company could consume the invested capital. The value of small companies with

limited sales but an attractive business idea, exceeded the value of established public companies.

This was a bubble, but an important fact is that many of the founders managed to sell their businesses to bigger actors before

the downfall. Thus, a considerable number of very young persons became millionaires. Ever since, this is a real inspiration for

new start-ups. The young millionaires have become venture capitalists and “business angels” for new companies. Skype and

one of its founders, Niklas Zennström, is a good example and there are many others.

The burst of the bubble also caused a dramatic fall (-80 %) in applications for higher ICT education. This generated a

competence gap, which Sweden is still suffering from. To compensate for this gap, the laws for immigration and work permits

have been changed to facilitate an inflow of experts.

Broadband for all

Swedish politicians on all levels, not least the government, were also very much affected by the potential of the Internet. This

could be an opportunity to connect all parts of Sweden to the world, environmental impact from travelling could be reduced,

etc. The location of a company would not be crucial if only the Internet-connection was good enough.

A political vision, “Broadband for all” was formulated, stating that all parts of Sweden should have access to fast broadband

networks. To quite an extent, this has been realised and the access to fast Internet in Sweden is among the best in the world

since many years. It is definitely part of the infrastructure in the country.

Home PC-reform

In the late 1990s the “Home PC-reform” was launched by the government. The purpose was to facilitate for households to buy a

PC. People were given the possibility to purchase a computer through their employer on very favourable terms, supported by

the government through tax deductions. The result was that Sweden became a nation with a very high penetration of privately

owned computers.

3.1.2. General characteristics

ICT is important in Sweden. This sector has been growing fast and has repeatedly been identified by many instances in the

country as a critical sector for the country, a sector for the future with a potential to boost and gradually replace traditional

manufacturing industry.

According to the Swedish IT and Telecom Industries (a member organization), the total turnover in this sector is about

70 billion Euro with more than 200 000 persons employed as per end of 2011. This makes the ICT sector one of the most

important parts of the Swedish economy.

The ICT sector is dynamic and there is an on-going consolidation of companies. Many companies have been sold to foreign

corporations and about 40% of the persons employed work for a foreign-owned company2.

The sector is represented in almost all regions of Sweden, but the concentration to the Stockholm area is remarkably high.

Stockholm is dominating with almost 50% of the ICT-workforce, followed by the Gothenburg region with 18% and Malmö-

Lund and Linköping regions with 5% each.

The government has an appointed minister for ICT with the following vision:

"Sweden is to be a leading IT nation, where technology serves the people.“

Basically, the first part of this vision has already been realised. The government launched a Digital Agenda in 2011, where the

ambition to include the whole society in the development and use of ICT is clearly expressed. The agenda is named “ICT for

everyone”.

Swedes have a high self-esteem concerning the level of ICT in their country. This is also supported by numerous ranking lists.

One example is the Networked Readiness Index (NRI). The NRI aims to measure the ability of countries to leverage

information and communication technologies (ICTs) for improved competitiveness and wellbeing. This index is a core part of

the Global Information Technology Report 2013, the 12th in the series, published by the World Economic Forum. Table 1

shows the top ten countries in the world. In 2013, Sweden lost its top position, which it had held for several years, to Finland.

Sweden has maintained its score while Finland and Singapore have improved their ranking in several of the indicators.

Table 1: Networked Readiness Index 2013

RANK COUNTRY SCORE RANK 2012

1 Finland 5.98 3

2 Singapore 5.96 2

3 Sweden 5.91 1

4 Netherlands 5.81 6

5 Norway 5.66 7

6 Switzerland 5.66 5

7 United Kingdom 5.64 10

8 Denmark 5.58 4

2 http://www.vinnova.se/upload/EPiStorePDF/va_13_07.pdf

9 United States 5.57 8

10 Taiwan 5.47 11

Source: World Economic Forum (2013)

Sweden is a sparsely populated country with long distances. Most of the people live in cities and urbanization is still on-going.

This constitutes a big challenge for all kinds of infrastructure. How to keep people living in remote areas connected? How can

companies in these areas be competitive? This has been a strong driving force for the development and investments in

telecommunication networks, not least mobile networks.

Thus, Sweden together with Finland, is the birthplace of wireless technologies such as GSM, WCDMA, LTE and Bluetooth.

Networks manufactured by Ericsson, one of Sweden’s biggest companies, handle almost half of the world’s mobile traffic3.

Ericsson, with a revenue of EUR 30 billion and 112 000 employees worldwide (17 000 in Sweden), is the dominating player in

the Swedish ICT-sector.

Swedes - individuals as well as companies and organizations - have a reputation as “early adopters”. Consumers are curious

and willing to test new things. The potential in new technology to increase competitiveness is continuously followed and

evaluated by companies. Sweden is often used as a test market for new solutions by global companies. It is a small,

homogenous market with well-educated people.

Swedes also regard themselves as innovative in ICT, with a capability to create new businesses and companies with

international reach. Some successful examples:

QlikTech, a company founded in Lund, offering a software called QlikView for transforming complex data into easily-

understandable information. The head-office is located in the US and the company is among the top three of Forbes’ 2012 list

of America’s 25 fastest-growing tech companies, alongside Apple and LinkedIn4.

Spotify, an online streaming music service, has grown to 24 million active users in 28 selected markets5 in only a few years.

Skype, the free Internet calling tool, is perhaps the most well-known example. Co-founded by Niklas Zennström, the

company was sold to eBay for USD 2.6 billion in 2005.

3.1.3. Swedish regional ICT clusters

There are many regional initiatives to support the economic and social development is Sweden. In 2009, Vinnova has

conducted a survey about clusters in Sweden. Cluster can mean different things from improvised and spontaneous cooperation

between companies in a region to more organized and financed initiatives.

Below is an extract from the Vinnova-report, where clusters related to ICT have been selected. It should be noted though, that

some additional clusters targeting a specific industry sector, such as the Pulp & Paper or Steel industry, can also include ICT-

related issues.

Table 2: ICT-related regional clusters

ORGANIZATION REGION FOCUS WEB-ADDRESS

Process IT Innovations Norrbotten, Västerbotten New IT solutions for the base

industry

www.processitinnovations.se

Internet Bay Norrbotten, Västerbotten, Oulu Support local ICT companies to

reach international markets

www.internetbay.com

3 www.sweden.se

4 www.qliktech.com

5 www.di.se

Future Position X Gävleborg Geographical IT www.fpx.se

Fiber Optic Valley Gävleborg, Västernorrland Sensor- and broadband www.fiberopticvalley.com

Compare Värmland Competence provision and

local establishment of ICT

companies

www.compare.se

Automation Region Mälar-valley Industrial automation www.automationregion.com

Robot Valley Västmanland, Södermanland,

Örebro

Robotics for industry, logistics

and healthcare

www.robotdalen.se

Kista Science City Stockholm ICT, particularly wireless

communication

www.kista.com

Mobile Heights Skåne Mobile communication www.mobileheights.org

Telecom City Karlskrona (Blekinge) Telecommunication and IT www.telecomcity.org

Source: Vinnova report 2009:31 Kartläggning av svenska klusterinitiativ (2009)

The most important of these is Kista Science City, which is a world-leading hotspot in telecom and IT. Currently there are close

to 1200 ICT companies located in Kista, 90% of them are export companies6. Several international ICT companies have located

R&D activities in Kista.

In addition to these clusters there are a number of Science Parks and Incubation Centres, usually connected to a university.

There is a non-profit association called Swedish Incubators & Science Parks (SISP) with national coverage. SISP has 64

members representing 5 000 companies. The focus is growth in knowledge-based companies.

Some of these Science Parks have a long and successful history. Many successful ICT companies have their origin in Ideon

Innovation in Lund, Chalmers Innovation or Mjärdevi Science Park in Linköping. Lately Minc in Malmö has been noticed in

media in connection with Apple’s acquisitions of two Swedish companies, Polar Rose and AlgoTrim. See more at www.minc.se

Information about SISP can be found on www.sisp.se.

3.2. THE MARKET IN 2013

The total Swedish ICT market is expected to grow slightly with 1-2 % during 2013. This reflects an uncertainty about the

general economic development, especially in Europe. According to the most recent information, the trend is slightly more

optimistic for the remaining part of the year7.

The competition is strong in the commodity type of products and services such as hardware, outsourcing and application

management, where the price erosion is expected to be 3-4 %.

However, there are emerging areas where the growth is expected to be considerably higher. This is expressed in the following

way by Tieto, the third largest IT service provider in Sweden, in their Q2 2013 report:

“Areas like mobility and cloud services are expected to

see double-digit growth rates while the market for traditional IT services is likely to decline”

Tieto has identified “pockets of growth” which are regarded as important general market drivers:

6 www.kista.com

7 http://radareco.se/r/2013/it-radar-2013-it-marknadens-utsikter-och-forutsattningar-infor-2013/

Mobility is a core driver of the IT landscape as it changes the way enterprises interact with customers, partners and

suppliers, and empower their workforce with access to information and services. The growth trend is expected to further

accelerate, as mobility is gradually becoming an integrated component in traditional IT projects.

Cloud: Customers are increasingly transferring their operations into scalable and flexible cloud environments, where

capacity provisioning takes only a few minutes while it previously took several days. Due to the increased efficiency

resulting from a higher level of automation, the profitability of cloud services is higher than that of traditional services,

which are now being cannibalized.

Big data is expected to be one of the fastest growing areas of IT services in the longer term. It is utilized to store and

analyze massive amounts of data, such as information on customer behavior or a large quantity of sensor measurements,

making it possible to develop applications to solve new kinds of complex business problems. Big data currently represents

around 1% of the IT services market and the share is expected to grow to around 5% by 2016.

Social features are standard in most digital consumer services, and are increasingly being integrated in work

environments as well. As a result, organizations are able to rapidly gather new information, insights and intelligence from

the external environment, making them more responsive and adaptive to change.

3.3. SWOT ANALYSIS

Strengths The Swedish ICT market is dynamic and growing but still

graspable

Easy to find information and get access to key persons

International business environment with full acceptance

of international partnerships and ownerships

Corporate taxation is competitive and transparent

Sweden is a natural entry-point and hub for the Nordic

region

Swedes are open-minded and willingly embrace new

ideas and technology

Lots of similarities between Sweden and Switzerland in

business structure and mind-set

Sweden is a well-functioning, dynamic society with clean

environment, good health care and lots of opportunities

for leisure activities

Weaknesses Tough international competition with price pressure for

products and services which are seen as commodities

Not the largest ICT market in Europe

Prices for houses and apartments in Stockholm are rather

high

The business and management culture is perceived as

special by foreign companies. Communication and

involvement are important in a Swedish organization and

can prolong decision making

Opportunities “Swiss made” is a strong brand

Gripen-deal and the Swiss Industrial Participation

Program

Lack of ICT expertise in Sweden

Lots of small companies in need of capital and other

growth triggers

Some Swiss companies have a strong presence in

Sweden, not least ABB

Strong Swiss ICT know-how in banking could be useful

for modernizing aging systems in Swedish banks

Threats Switzerland is so far not among the top 15 trading

partners for Sweden. Swedes normally turn to Germany

or the US in ICT matters

No Gripen-deal and the Swiss Industrial Participation

Program will not be realized

Swiss ICT companies are not well-known

3.4. FUTURE TRENDS ACROSS THE ICT SECTOR

Usability

“Jävla skitsystem!” (“Stupid bloody system!”) is the title of a book by Jonas Söderström, published in 2010, which refers to the

many frustrated users of IT systems. In a report about IT work environment8, the Swedish trade union “Unionen” estimates

that every person could save half an hour per day on average, if the IT system would work properly with the required

functionality. The book has been sold in many copies and Jonas Söderström is a popular speaker. The problems with IT

systems are a mix of technical and usability issues.

Usability is part of an increased awareness of the “hidden costs” of an IT-system, the failure to deliver the expected benefits. If

users can’t use the system properly, but are busy with finding workarounds instead, the intended benefits won’t be reached.

Usability is being considered as a future competitive edge for successful actors.

Mobility

Mobility is changing the way people work in an enterprise or organization. Mobile access to IT systems is gradually becoming

an integrated part in application management and new development projects. The growth in mobile solutions is expected to

continue and even accelerate. There are several challenges in this development, such as security, device-independence , user

support, etc. Still, the potential benefits are considerable and substantial resources are allocated to provide mobile solutions for

enterprises.

Big data

As the cost of computing power, data storage and Internet access have plunged over the past two decades, companies have

recognized the power of data in their businesses. Big data is expected to be one of the fastest growing areas of IT services in the

longer term. It is utilized to store and analyze massive amounts of data, such as information on customer behavior or a large

quantity of sensor measurements, making it possible to develop applications to solve new kinds of complex problems.

Big data is “hot” and is discussed in numerous events and seminars covering all sectors of business and society. Many start-ups

have Big data as their basic business concept. However, looking into the number of real implemented applications, the

impression arises that Big data is currently in a rather early stage of its development.

One Swedish success story is Panopticon Software, a company specialized in the visualization of relevant data in real-time to

see hidden patterns, track market trends as well as spot and resolve problems. Their solutions are used in the financial services

market, for example. Panopticon was acquired by US-based Datawatch earlier this year.

Cloud computing

Cloud computing has established as a mega trend. For traditional IT Services providers, Cloud services are now a natural part

of their offering. The main drivers for enterprises and organizations are cost reductions and flexibility. Security is the main

barrier.

Social features

Social features are standard in most digital consumer services. A clear trend here is the increasing interest from enterprises to

integrate this kind of features in their environment. As a result, organizations are able to rapidly gather new information,

insights and intelligence from customers, partners and external sources, making them more responsive and adaptive to change.

BYOD (Bring Your Own Device)

Bring your own device (BYOD) means the policy of permitting employees to bring personally owned mobile devices (laptops,

tablets and smart phones) to their workplace, and use them to access company information and applications.

According to Logicalis who refers to a paper by Ovum, BYOD is common in “fast growing” economies (including Brazil, Russia,

India, UAE, and Malaysia) with up to 75% of the respondents using their own device at work9. In Sweden, the demand from

younger persons to be able to use their own device at work is growing, too. It is simply more convenient. So far, Swedish

enterprises have been very reluctant to give respective permissions due to security reasons. The business risks are obvious.

8 http://unionenopinion.se/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/Tj%C3%A4nstem%C3%A4nnens_it_milj%C3%B6_FINAL.pdf

9 http://www.logicalis.com/news-and-events/news/logicalis-white-paper-byod.aspx#.Ui7yojbIbZQ

However, mobility and accessibility aspects are pushing in the same direction as well as productivity reasons. Therefore, it

could be expected that BYOD is here to stay and solutions to security problems will be found.

3.5. ICT SEGMENTS

3.5.1. IT Outsourcing

Outsourcing of server management, network management and desktops to external companies has been a popular cost-cutting

measure for several years. The segment has had a substantial growth during the last years. This is expected to continue, not

least in the public sector. The revenues in this segment are estimated to be about EUR 2-3 billion10. The duration of the

contracts is normally several years and value of the yearly renewals varies according to price expectations.

Price competition is tough. In Sweden, Indian companies have experienced a remarkable development during the last years.

They are gaining market share and are highly ranked in customer satisfaction surveys. Within only a few years, Indian

companies have reached 15 % market share11.

The customers in this segment have become more professional in their purchasing processes compared to the early times of

outsourcing. Service Level Agreements are handled with great care and performance indicators are monitored.

Major players Table 3: IT Outsourcing actors

COMPANY ORIGIN BUSINESS FOCUS WEB-ADDRESS

Tieto FI/SE IT Service provider www.tieto.com

IBM US IT provider

Logica/CGI CA/SE End-to-end www.logica.se

EVRY NO IT Service provider www.evry.se

Cap Gemini FR IT Service provider www.se.capgemini.com

Volvo IT SE IT Service provider www.volvoit.com

Tata CS IN IT Service provider www.tcs.com

Accenture US IT Service provider www.accenture.com

HP US IT provider www.hp.com

Fujitsu JP IT provider www.fujitsu.com/se/

TDC Hosting DK IT Service provider www.tdchosting.se

CSC US IT Service provider www.csc.com/se

Siemens DE IT provider www.siemens.se/

Future trends The outsourcing market in the Nordic region is close to EUR 8 billion with an expected growth of 6, 5 % between 2012 and

201512. The public sector is expected to increase their outsourcing activities.

Lately, Cloud computing is becoming a real option in some areas. This opens up opportunities for new actors. According to the

analysis company Radar, the average cost for storing 1GB of data during one month in-house, outsourced and in a cloud

environment is roughly the following:

10

www.idg.se 11

Whitelane Research 12

Analyst Technologies, 2012

This clearly illustrates the growing interest for Cloud computing.

The competition is fierce in this segment.

3.5.2. ERP Systems

ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems are IT-solutions that cover most of the business processes in a company or

organization. They are normally targeting all kinds of businesses and organizations.

There are two different types of actors in this segment: system providers and system integrators. The system providers have

different models for their businesses. The global players normally have a partner program while some of the smaller players

also handle the implementation projects.

System integrators are responsible for the implementation of projects and most often for the application management. They

are normally certified partners to the license provider. All major IT service providers are among the integrators.

ERP-systems in Swedish companies are generally quite old. 40 % of the Swedish organizations have systems that are more

than 12 years old13. This is quite remarkable if you consider the rapid technical development. Low results in customer and user

satisfaction surveys constitute another remarkable observation.

SAP in particular and Oracle are the dominating systems in larger international companies. For SMEs the situation is different.

Traditionally, Swedish suppliers have a strong position. Intentia, IBS and IFS all had a substantial market share 10 years ago,

especially in medium-sized companies. However, all three have had problems to upgrade their systems to new technology.

Intentia with their system Movex is now part of Lawson (later merged into Infor), while the other two are still in the market,

but Microsoft Dynamics and others are gaining market share in the segment. Domestic solutions are also dominating in

smaller companies. This part of the segment is more fragmented. Solutions as Jeeves and Monitor have had some success

lately, but there are many others.

Major players Table 4: ERP Systems actors

COMPANY ORIGIN BUSINESS FOCUS WEB-ADDRESS

SAP DE License provider with partner

program

www.sap.com/sweden/

Oracle US License provider with partner

program

www.oracle.com/se/

Infor/Lawson US Provider/integrator www.infor.com

Microsoft US License provider with partner www.microsoft.com/sverige/

13

Radar Ecosystems

0

2

4

6

8

10

In-house Outsourcing Cloud

Monthly cost for storing 1 GB (SEK)

program

IFS SE Provider/integrator www.ifsworld.com

IBS SE Provider/integrator www.ibs.net

Jeeves SE License provider with partner

program

www.jeeves.se

Monitor SE Provider/integrator www.monitor.se

IBM US Integrator

Cap Gemini FR Integrator www.se.capgemini.com

Tieto FI/SE Integrator www.tieto.com

Acando SE Integrator www.acando.com/se/

Logica/CGI CA Integrator http://www.cgi.com/

Future trends There is a general need to upgrade or replace many of the current ERP-systems. They are based upon old technology even if

regular upgrades have been made. The usability is not meeting the expectations of the users. Still, the incentive to change is

low, due to the risks in such a project. Needed decisions are postponed. Sales of licenses and implementation projects could

therefore be expected to increase from a low level when the economic outlook is more positive.

The application management part of the market is stable.

There is a growing market for add-on applications to existing systems. This includes portals for order management, mobility

functionality, Business Intelligence-tools, CRM (Customer Relationship Management) solutions, etc.

3.5.3. Communication services

This segment includes the main services provided by the telephone operators. In addition to the traditional players there are

companies focused on broadband services, IP-telephony and Internet-based services.

The traditional operators are dominating with TeliaSonera as the biggest company, followed by Tele2, Telenor and Hi3G

Access AB. Even if these companies are not expanding, rather the opposite, they are still fundamental for the infrastructure in

Sweden.

Beside the operators there are companies with their background in TV-distribution, broadband networks and IP-telephony.

ComHem AB is a major player in TV-distribution and broadband, and Skype is the most famous IP-telephone company.

The strongest development is in the Internet-based services area with a number of new companies and applications. Among

these are telephone directories, payment services and a number of other specialized services. Klarna is an example of a new

and fast growing company dealing with Internet payment services. The company was founded in 2005 by three students.

Today, it has 10 million customers and is the market leader in Europe. Recently the Swiss private equity company Partners

Group bought an equity stake indicating a market value of Klarna at EUR 900 million14.

Major players Table 5: Communication services actors

COMPANY ORIGIN BUSINESS FOCUS WEB-ADDRESS

TeliaSonera SE/FI Telephone operator www.telia.se

14

http://www.di.se/artiklar/2013/8/15/klarna-varderas-till-miljardbelopp/

Tele2 SE Telephone operator www.tele2.se

Telenor NO Telephone operator www.telenor.se

Com Hem SE Cable TV, broadband www.comhem.se

Eniro SE Telephone directory www.eniro.se

Klarna SE Internet payment services www.klarna.com

Future trends Traditional telephone communication services including mobile phones are in a relatively stable situation. Employment is

slightly decreasing. The Internet-based specialized services area is under strong development with a diversity of new

companies starting up. Many of these companies will be consolidated into larger organizations, but it is expected that many

different services will co-exist in complex networks to offer consumers and organizations new services over the Internet.

3.5.4. Industrial IT

Industrial IT includes IT-systems used in an industrial production process. These can be automation systems, industrial

robots, process monitoring, CAD (Computer Aided Design) and similar. Frequently used acronyms are MES (Mill Execution

Systems) and EMI (Enterprise Manufacturing Intelligence). MES are IT solutions that control the important production

processes. EMI represents software solutions that collect and present manufacturing-related data from a variety of sources in

order to provide decision makers with clear information about the organization's performance.

Embedded ICT systems are included in this segment. Embedded systems are ICT-systems with a specific task as part of a larger

mechanical or electronic system. There is a wide variety of these systems, from smart sensors, mobile phones, safety systems in

vehicles to e.g. avionics systems in the military aircraft Gripen. The number of applications is almost unlimited.

The manufacturing and base industries are very important for the Swedish economy. High labor costs have been a driver for

automation and stream-lined production processes. ICT is becoming a very important component in this on-going process.

This segment has been selected as one strategic area for research & development on a national level. The government has

allocated substantial resources to support this. The cluster called “Process IT Innovation” has been appointed to manage this

effort.

Major players Table 6: Industrial IT actors

COMPANY ORIGIN BUSINESS FOCUS WEB-ADDRESS

ABB CH Automation, robots, MES www.abb.com

Siemens DE Automation, PLC

(Programmable Logic

Controller)

www.siemens.com

AspenTech US MES, EMI www.aspentech.com

Volvo IT SE Wireless Car www.volvoit.com

HiQ SE Embedded systems www.hiq.se

ÅF Technology SE Embedded systems www.afconsult.com

Cybercom SE Embedded systems www.cybercom.com

Combitech (Saab) SE Embedded systems, industrial

IT

www.combitech.se

Prevas SE Embedded systems, MES, EMI www.prevas.com

IAR Systems SE Programming tools for

embedded systems

www.iar.com

Future trends The cloud is also coming to the automation and Industrial IT arena. These systems are typically very mission-critical and it is

expected to be a slower transformation. The need to collect and store big amounts of data will be a driver. One small Swedish

company, AcobiaFLUX, has launched the concept Cloud Automation.

Major new software applications will be in wireless sensors and distributed peer-to-peer networks – tiny operating systems in

wireless sensor nodes, and the software that allows nodes to communicate with each other as a larger complex adaptive system.

The awareness of harmful intruders and other system security risks has increased as a result of Stuxnet, a computer worm

targeting Siemens Control systems, created to attack Iran's nuclear facilities.

A comprehensive report on future trends can be found in the “European Roadmap for Industrial Automation”,

http://processit.eu/Content/Files/Roadmap%20for%20IPA_130613.pdf, published by ProcessIT.eu in a Finnish-Swedish

cooperation.

3.5.5. Mobile applications

Sweden is a highly mobile country. Mobile penetration is at least 140%, and smart phone penetration is well above 50%, one of

the highest in the world15. Mobile applications in this context refer to applications for smart phones and tablet computers.

This technology requires know-how from system development for mobile phones, innovativeness and Internet-technology. It

fits very well with the Swedish ICT competence profile. A large number of companies are developing mobile applications. Most

of them are small and primarily focused on the consumer market with games and entertainment applications.

Mobility is changing life also in enterprises. Mobile access to information and applications is an integrated part in most IT

projects. The required functionality can be reached by building a mobile application specifically for the devices selected.

Another method is to build a web-interface, mobile web, which fits different web-browsers, including smart phones and

tablets. “Responsive web” is a term used for applications that automatically detect what kind of device is being used and adapt

the user interface accordingly. Enterprise applications could also be new tools with limited connection to enterprise systems.

There are applications such as calculation tools, map-based systems, etc , for mobile workforces, systems that are technically

very similar to applications targeting the consumer market. The demand for competence and resources is big.

Mobile solutions in general constitute a security concern for enterprises. What happens if the mobile device is lost? Security

policies and solutions are key in implementing mobility.

Another kind of mobile applications are technically very advanced solutions aimed at the in-built functionality in a mobile

device. This is an area where Swedish companies are successful, which has caught the attention of global players as Apple.

Recently, a couple of Swedish companies were acquired by Apple. AlgoTrim is a company developing advanced solutions for

mobile devices within the fields of data compression, mobile imaging and video and computer graphics. These solutions are

designed for high performance and small memory requirements, making them ideal for mobile devices. It is estimated that by

the end of 2011, AlgoTrim technology was in use in 100 million mobile phones16. AlgoTrim was acquired by Apple during the

summer.

Another example is Polar Rose, a company making software for facial recognition. Polar Rose was sold to Apple in 2010.

Mobile payment services are attracting a lot of interest. The technology is either based on Near Field Communication (NFC) or

other means such as card readers attached to the phone. Izettle is a Swedish company working with card readers.

15

http://mobithinking.com/country-guides-home/guide-mobile-web-sweden 16

http://www.99mac.se/artikel/4392-apple-bakom-kop-av-skanska-algotrim

Major players There are a lot of small companies developing applications for mobile phones and tablets. The following web-address contains

a large number of companies: http://www.applikationsutvecklare.se/svenska-app-foretag/.

Tieto and HiQ are players that develop mobile solutions for companies from scratch.

Table 7: Mobile application actors

COMPANY ORIGIN BUSINESS FOCUS WEB-ADDRESS

iZettle SE Mobile card payments www.izettle.com

Appanero SE Mobile applications www.appanero.se

Tieto FI/SE Product development www.tieto.com

HiQ SE Product development www.hiq.se

Future trends Mobility will become even more important in the future. Mobile devices are gaining market share rapidly compared to desktop

computers and laptops. Smartphones and tablets are expected to become the primary devices for Internet access.

Mobile payment services, also named mobile wallet services will be the most significant development in the payments industry

during this decade according to Berg Insight, an analyst company in the Telecom industry.17 Berg Insight expects that 2016–

2017 will be the first years in which mobile wallets approach mass market penetration and more than ten million new wallet

users will then be added on an annual basis.

Security issues will continue to be a focus area. Fingerprint sensors represent a promising technology to improve the

identification management.

3.5.6. Internet of Things

“Internet of things” normally refers to objects communicating directly with each other using the Internet. RFID is the typical

example. RFID is an old technology often used in anti-theft applications and for access control. This is still valid, but the

technology is experiencing a new era as the demand for traceability and identification of objects is increasing. Tracing of

objects on item level requires a large amount of transponders. The increasing volume leads to lower prices, which generates

new opportunities for the technology. The cost for identification is also going down. Some smartphones already contain RFID

readers. The technology can thus replace or complement barcodes.

Another expanding area of application is M2M (Machine to Machine) communication. The most well-known example is

automatic meter reading. A large number of electricity meters are now being equipped with a kit to enable reading the

consumption from distance. This saves costs for the electricity companies and goes well in line with the energy saving

ambitions.

Smart sensors can also be included in this segment. Sensors embedded in physical objects are linked through networks, often

using the same Internet Protocol (IP) that connects the Internet. These networks collect huge volumes of data that flow to

computers for analysis. When objects can both sense the environment and communicate, they become tools for understanding

complexity and responding to it swiftly.

17

http://www.berginsight.com/ReportPDF/ProductSheet/bi-mobilewallet-ps.pdf

Major players Table 8: Internet of Things actors

COMPANY ORIGIN BUSINESS FOCUS WEB-ADDRESS

Maingate SE M2M www.maingatesolutions.com

Vilant FI RFID www.vilant.com

Tagmaster SE Long range RFID www.tagmaster.com

Siemens DE RFID www.siemens.com

UPM Raflatac FI RFID transponders www.upmraflatac.com

Acreo SE Smart sensors www.acreo

Future trends RFID has been a promising technology for decades, but the commercial break-through is still to be seen. Demand for

traceability on item-level is increasing and mass-implementations by WalMart, Tesco and other retailers will drive the cost

down. Perhaps this will be the long awaited trigger.

Smart sensor networks technology is mostly in an early phase. It is a very promising technology though, and the connection to

big data is obvious.

3.5.7. IT Security

IT security is a wide area with many different aspects. The traditional key concepts are confidentiality, integrity and

availability. IT security is a major concern in all ICT segments. Everyone is thinking about IT security. It is not a special

technical issue for the IT department anymore.

The Swedish market for IT security is estimated to EUR 300 million in 2013 and is growing. 75% is services and the remaining

25% is software. In addition it can be noted that traditional security enterprises such as Securitas, Assa Abloy, G4S and others,

are incorporating IT security in their services. This part would add another EUR 600 million18.

The main challenges are the explosion of data, increased access to systems from consumers and the fact that threats are

continuously becoming more sophisticated.

Major players Table 9: IT Security actors

COMPANY ORIGIN BUSINESS FOCUS WEB-ADDRESS

Symantec US Antivirus www.symantec.com/sv/se/

F-Secure FI Antivirus www.f-secure.com

Cygate (TeliaSonera) SE/FI Secure IT infrastructure www.cygate.se

Secode SE IT Security services www.secode.com

Truesec SE Consultancy, training www.truesec.se

Cybercom SE Identity and access, industrial

systems security

www.cybercom.com

18

http://sakerhet24.idg.se/2.29373/1.500237/nu-tanker-alla-sakerhet

Safeside SE Consultancy www.safeside.se

Future trends The awareness of security risks has increased in all organizations. It seems as if the transfer of services to cloud environment

triggers discussions about IT security. The managements of organizations are pushing for IT security policy and much-needed

investments. IT security definitely has caught on management attention.

Mobile devices and the BYOD trend is challenging from most IT security aspects. This will create a strong demand for

technology and applications to meet the respective requirements.

IT security in automation systems is a growing concern, too. This requires special expertise, as the character of these systems is

very different from ERP- or Office systems. Stuxnet (virus incident targeted at Iranian nuclear plant that was affecting

Siemens’ automation field Siemantic (leading system for process control)) was perhaps the trigger for this growing concern. In

Sweden, these risks are rated as national security risks.

3.5.8. E-Government

An extensive description of e-Government in Sweden is available in an e-Government factsheet from 2012 issued by the EU:

http://www.epractice.eu/files/eGovernmentSweden.pdf. It seems, however, that that other countries have caught up and

passed by Sweden in e-Government19 during the past years. Perhaps this has triggered the increased efforts by the Swedish

Government in this area.

A major concern in Sweden is the fact that more than 1 million persons are not able or willing to use the Internet, in particular

elderly people. In a digitalized society, this constitutes a real problem. This is probably why the Digital Agenda that was

launched by the Swedish Government in 2011 is named “ICT for everyone”20. Digital inclusion is a key word in this document.

It is stated that the government’s task is to create good conditions through rules, to formulate policy goals and to eliminate

obstacles to development. However, in order to reach a world leading position in exploiting the opportunities in digitization,

the government has decided to set up a “Digitization Commission”.

The Digital Agenda identifies four strategic areas based on the user’s perspective:

easy and safe to use

services that create benefit

the need for infrastructure

the role of ICT for societal development

In the specific area of e-Government, the government has set up an “e-Government Delegation” in 2009

(www.edelegationen.se). The principal task of the Delegation is to coordinate the e-Government development projects and to

follow up their impact on citizens and business operators. A further task of the Delegation is to coordinate specific IT

standardization issues and assist the Government in the international work in this area. In April 2013, the Delegation got an

additional remit on IT standardization in health care.

In December 2012, the strategy document “With the citizen in the centre”21, a strategy for e-Government was launched by the

government. The main goals are:

A simpler life for citizens

More open management that supports innovation and inclusion

Higher quality and efficiency of operations

The actual procurement of e-Government services is coordinated by the National Procurement Services, an organization that

was established in January 2011 as a department within the central government authority Kammarkollegiet. Its task is to offer

central government authorities framework agreements for goods and services of general use. In the ICT-area, local and

regional authorities as well as central government authorities can use these framework agreements.

19

http://it.almegabloggar.se/2013/07/10/gar-det-bra-for-sverige 20

http://www.regeringen.se/sb/d/108/a/181801 21

http://www.regeringen.se/content/1/c6/20/60/04/c096c8a9.pdf

On the local and regional level there is another organization, The Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions,

SALAR (SKL in Swedish). SALAR represents Sweden's 290 municipalities and 20 county councils, including the regions of

Gotland, Halland, Skåne and Västra Götaland. Within SALAR there is a company called Kommentus. Through their

organization for procurement, SKL Kommentus Inköpscentral, procurement of ICT solutions is coordinated and frame

agreements are signed.

Major players Table 10: E-Government actors

COMPANY ORIGIN BUSINESS FOCUS WEB-ADDRESS

CGI Sweden CA/SE IT service provider www.cgi.se

Tieto FI/SE IT service provider www.tieto.se

Cybercom Group SE Connected world www.cybercomgroup.com

Ida Infront (Addnode) SE Case management, secure

exchange of information

www.idainfront.se

www.addnode.se

Softronic SE Management and IT

consultancy

www.softronic.se

Visma Consulting NO IT services for the public sector www.visma.se

Artvise SE Document and case

management

www.artvise.se

Knowit SE IT Service provider www.knowit.se

Capgemini FR IT Service provider www.se.capgemini.com

Vergic SE Customer service on-line www.vergic.com

Lemontree SE Automated e-Government,

EGO

www.lemontree.se

Software Innovation NO Public 360° - Document and

case management

www.software-innovation.com

Future trends e-Government is dependent on public funding and the Swedish public finances are generally strong. However, there is a

significant cost cutting pressure on most governmental agencies and authorities. The finances on the regional and local level

differ significantly. Increased self-services for citizens and companies can improve efficiency as well as the service-level and

accessibility. Investments in e-Government are therefore expected to continue.

The strategy document “With the citizen in the centre” is a general guideline, which clearly defines the future prioritized

activities.

High usability for all citizens is very important. Services must be easy to use and uniformity across administrative bodies is

important.

The development will continue to provide open access to data and services with standardized interfaces to enable many actors

to develop and offer complementary services.

Coordination of development projects and IT operations will be strengthened in order to secure an efficient use of resources.

This is valid within the state administration as well as in counties and municipalities.

3.5.9. E-health

Healthcare in Sweden

The responsibility for health and medical care in Sweden is shared by the central government, county councils and

municipalities. The Health and Medical Service Act regulates the responsibilities of county councils and municipalities, and

gives local governments more freedom in this area.

Responsibility for providing health care lies with the county councils and, in some cases, municipal governments. Swedish

policy states that every county council must provide residents with good-quality health and medical care, and work to promote

good health for the entire population. County councils are also responsible for dental care of local residents up to the age of 20.

Sweden’s municipalities are responsible for elderly care at home or in special accommodation. Their duties also include care

for people with physical disabilities or psychological disorders and providing support and services for people released from

hospital care as well as for school health care.

These bodies can either choose to deliver the care themselves, or use private companies, cooperatives or non-profit

organizations. The proportion of health and social care provided by private care providers is growing rapidly.

eHealth strategy and current status

Sweden also has a strategy for eHealth, “National eHealth - the strategy for accessible and secure information in health and

social care” from 2010: http://www.government.se/content/1/c6/19/52/46/10fe6449.pdf.

The strategy is focused on the following action areas:

eServices for accessibility and empowerment

Usable and accessible information

Knowledge management, innovation and learning

Technical infrastructure

Information structure, terminology and standards

Laws and regulatory frameworks

The strategy is under the direction of the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs in cooperation with the National Board of

Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen), the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions, SALAR (Sveriges Kommuner

och Landsting, SKL), the Association of Private Care Providers (Vårdföretagarna) and Famna (the Swedish Association for

Non-Profit Health and Social Services).

The health authorities on the regional and local level have the primary responsibility for the implementation, development

and funding of their activities, including eHealth. This means that they must collectively finance the work that needs to be done

on a national level. The government can promote and support important areas within the activities of the health authorities.

Swedish county councils alone put about EUR 700 million a year into various eHealth services and an increasingly large

amount is being set aside in a joint development budget22.

Center for eHealth in Sweden

In order for county councils' and regions' collaboration in eHealth matters to be run effectively, the Center for eHealth in

Sweden (ceHis) has been formed to coordinate and push these efforts forward. The Center shall create the long-term

conditions necessary for developing and introducing nationwide use of IT in the decentralized health and social care.

The Center for eHealth in Sweden is governed by representatives of county councils and regions, the Swedish Association of

Local Authorities and Regions (SALAR), municipalities and private care providers. See more at:

http://www.cehis.se/en#sthash.JglNkHI2.dpuf

The status of eHealth in Sweden has been summarized in a Country Brief (http://ehealth-

strategies.eu/database/documents/sweden_countrybrief_ehstrategies.pdf), published by the European Commission in

October 2010:

22

http://www.government.se/content/1/c6/19/52/46/10fe6449.pdf

In Sweden a National Patient Summary- Den nationella patientöversikten- (NPÖ) has been in place

since April 2008.

National ePrescription has been common routine in Sweden from before 2000 and has a take-up of

almost 100%. It allows the secure and reliable exchange of confidential data, including images. Since

2003 the network has been based on VLAN technology from Song Networks with high built-in

redundancy, and technically separated from the Internet. The separation from the Internet means

better availability with regards to bandwidth.

Sweden has adopted different standards and is also a member of the International Health Terminology

Standard Development Organization (IHTSDO). Current tasks concerning the terminology

standardisation are the work on harmonisation to complement concepts and terms used within the

social and health services, as well as translating SNOMED CT into Swedish. This will take a few years

and is expected to be completed in 2011.

The use of telemedicine services is widely spread in Sweden, as in 2008 it was in use in over 100

applications and in more than 75% of the hospitals. Among the telemedicine types applied are

Teleconsultation (doctor-to-patient) and Telemonitoring and the most common telemedical area is

radiology, where X-ray, computer tomography and magnetic camera images are transferred for

consultation and second opinion.

This Country Brief is a good overview of eHealth in Sweden in general, even though it was published a few years ago.

The market

Ehealth includes a broad range of applications. In preventive care, there are applications for health information services (in

websites, mobile apps and hotlines), online communities (frequently user-driven), preventive care and wellness applications,

as well as personal health accounts.

Applications in traditional healthcare include electronic health records, electronic prescriptions, integrated health information

exchanges, eclinical applications, radiology information systems, telemedicine and health robotics. Traditional healthcare is

the largest application area where most of the resources are spent.

Finally, the third type of application refers to home care. Examples of applications are remote monitoring and home treatment.

General IT-services such as consulting and outsourcing services occur across the areas.

The global market for eHealth is vast. The estimated value is USD 120 – 150 billion and growing with 10% annually23.

The market is characterized by barriers to internationalization. eHealth providers therefore need to adapt to a large number of

local standards and regulations, requiring considerable financial resources and market specific knowledge. Thus,

internationalization has been limited and mostly by acquisition, where locally developed offerings are retained. Global

suppliers, using scale to lower costs and speed up innovation, are few.

Sweden is lagging behind some other European countries in areas such as telemedicine and e-services for citizens. One barrier

for citizen services is the fact that Sweden is missing a central e-identity policy.

There is a large number of Swedish eHealth providers. However, the organization of the public healthcare system leads to

fragmented systems purchasing. This becomes a barrier to growth and makes the development of standardized and scalable

offerings difficult. Therefore, few Swedish eHealth providers have successfully internationalized – and often such expansion

tends to be limited to the Nordic countries. The market segments in Sweden with most opportunities are IT consulting and

telemedicine. IT consulting services actually benefit from the fragmented systems environment. Telemedicine is a segment that

is less dependent on healthcare system characteristics, and also a segment in which Swedish companies have a long tradition,

not least Ericsson.

23

http://www.vinnova.se/upload/EPiStorePDF/va_12_03.pdf

Major players Table 11: E-health actors

COMPANY ORIGIN BUSINESS FOCUS WEB-ADDRESS

Compugroup DE eHealth www.compugroup.com

Sectra SE Medical image processing www.sectra.com

Ericsson SE Telemedicine www.ericsson.com

CGI/Logica CA/SE IT Services www.CGI.se

Tieto FI/SE IT Services, health records www.tieto.com

EVRY NO IT Services, health records

Cambio Healthcare

Systems

SE Health records, www.cambio.se

Visma

(PharmaSolutions)

SE Pharmacy systems www.visma.se

SecMaker SE Smartcard security (NetID) www.secmaker.com

Ortivus SE Mobile solutions for modern

emergency medical care

www.ortivus.se

RxEye SE Web service for imaging

diagnostics

www.rxeye.net

Mawell SE Streaming of images www.mawell.com

Future trends General trends such as mobility and transfer to cloud environments are valid in this segment, too. Specifically, the

infrastructure in terms of standardization and secure exchange of information will be focused on. This would facilitate for

providers to scale up and reach a bigger market.

A strategy document from CeHis covering the period of 2013-201824 indicates that the focus will be on e-services to citizens

and in general on increased productivity, i.e. more value for the same money. As stated above, the direct responsibility lies with

the county councils, but it is obvious that coordination and cooperation will be essential in order to work efficiently on all

levels.

Common activities will be focused on:

Definition, implementation and maintenance of a common architecture

Development, implementation and management of common services

The Swedish government is actively supporting coordinated efforts on the national level. As an example, the government has

established the e-Identification Board to support and coordinate electronic identification and control.

3.5.10. Cloud services

Cloud computing is a term used for IT provided as services over the Internet. It is normally regarded as a collective term

covering Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Software as a Service (SaaS). These services are

offered on a “pay per use” basis. The location and structure of the servers are often not known to the customers. Cloud

computing is a real buzzword used in numerous contexts nowadays. Early pioneers were Amazon Web services, SalesForce and

24

http://www.cehis.se/images/uploads/Nyheter/Skrift_CeHis_handlingsplan_2013_2018_120615.pdf

several others. The services have become more mature and diversified. Practically all major, global IT players now have a cloud

based offering, spanning from complete ERP-systems to back-up services.

Many people and organizations may have been using Cloud Services without knowing. Google mail is one good example.

Cloud computing offers scalability, flexibility, speed and cost efficiency. These are powerful drivers. The main barrier is

security. Where is my data? How can I be sure that it is safe? For security reasons there are organizations that will never

consider a cloud solution as realistic. Still, many companies are moving to the cloud. Typically they develop a step-by-step

approach, starting with systems that are not regarded as mission-critical. Microsoft Office 365, a cloud-version of the office

package, is often the first step, having led to a strong market position for Microsoft in this segment. Hybrid solutions with a

mixture of true cloud services, in-house clouds and traditional server management services are getting popular.

The US Patriotic Act which was signed in 2001 has been mentioned and discussed in several Cloud Computing events and

seminars. It gives US authorities access to all data stored servers located in the United States. The PRISM affair has spread

more light on these circumstances and respective awareness has increased among European companies and public

organizations. Therefore, there seems to be room for local or regional cloud services even if the real scale of economic effects

are not reached. City Network and WeCloud are a couple of new Swedish actors in this field. Also, traditional IT Service

providers such as Tieto are building capacity for cloud services.

Major players Table 12: Cloud services actors

COMPANY ORIGIN BUSINESS FOCUS WEB-ADDRESS

Microsoft US Office 365, Windows Azure www.microsoft.se

Google US Google Applications www.google

Amazon US Web services www.aw.amazon.com

Tieto FI IT Service provider www.tieto.com

City Network SE Cloud service provider www.citynetwork.se

WeCloud SE Cloud Service provider www.wecloud.se

Future trends Driven by cost cutting needs, the transfer to a cloud environment is increasing among companies and public organizations. A

modern cloud service is highly automated and very cost-efficient and thus more profitable for the service provider than

traditional services. These are “cannibalized” by the new cloud services.

PRISM could be a temporary backlash for the US companies. Demand for domestic or European suppliers is likely to increase.

Security is and will continue to be a major concern.

3.5.11. IT entertainment

This segment includes games for smartphones and web-users, streaming of music and video, TV on demand, etc.

In terms of total sales volume or number of persons involved, this is not a small segment.

There is an organization for game producers and distributors called Swedish Games Industry (Dataspelsbranschen). It is a

partnership organization, representing the industry. In their report Game Developer Index 2011, there are some facts and

figures about this industry:

“Swedish game development is an export industry and acts on a highly globalized market. The game industry has in a couple

of decades grown from a niche embraced by enthusiasts to a global industry with a considerable cultural and economic

impact. Swedish game developers nearly doubled their turnover in 2011, amassing a 96 % growth to a total of EUR 257

million”25

There are some spectacular examples of successful companies in this segment. One of them is the company Mojang with the

worldwide best-seller game called Minecraft. IT-24.se reports that the company had revenues of EUR 150 million and made a

profit of EUR 60 million in 201226. Their main cost are license fees to the creator of Minecraft and founder of the company,

Markus Persson. He is now a billionaire in SEK.

Streaming of music is another part of IT entertainment. Pirate Bay has reached international fame for their file sharing services

free of charge. They started their operations 10 years ago. Although the founders have been sentenced to prison, the site is still

up and running.

Spotify is another company offering down-streaming of music. However, in this case the artists are compensated. Spotify is on

a worldwide expansion journey and has gained a leading market position. Recent capital raisings value Spotify at c. EUR 3

billion27 , although they have not been making any profit to this date.

Major players Table 13: IT Entertainment actors

COMPANY ORIGIN BUSINESS FOCUS WEB-ADDRESS

Spotify SE Music on Internet

Mojang SE Games (Minecraft)

Starbreeze studios SE Games

G5 Entertainment SE/RU Games

Star Vault SE Games

EA Digital Illusions

Creative Entertainment

SE/CA Games (Battlefield) www.dice.se

Future trends Dataspelsbranschen, the Swedish member organization for game companies, estimates a 70 % growth for the coming year.

An interesting trend and buzzword in this context is “Gamification”. It describes the ambition to use game technology and

mechanisms for enhancing user experience and solving problems in a non-game context. It has been widely used in marketing

and customer loyalty programs, but is now expanding to other areas such as e-health, etc.

3.6. STATISTICAL DATA

Country facts

Area: 449 964 km2

Population: 9 555 893 inhabitants (2012)

Political system: Constitutional Monarchy, with parliamentary government

Currency: Swedish crowns (SEK), EUR 1 = SEK 8,73

GDP at market prices: EUR 409 022 million (2012)

GDP per inhabitant in PPS (Purchasing Power Standards, EU-27 = 100): 128.0 (2012)

GDP growth rate: 0.9 % (2012)

25

http://www.dataspelsbranschen.se/media/130988/game_developer_index_2011.pdf 26

www.it24.se 27

http://www.svd.se/naringsliv/branscher/teknik-och-telekom/spotify-vart-26-miljarder-kronor_7502506.svd

The main cities and the different regions are shown in the map.

Economy

The Swedish economy is built on rich reserves of iron ore and timber, as well as plentiful hydroelectric power. Since many

years, the country is highly dependent on exports and international trade. The traditional base industries such as the forest,

steel and manufacturing industry still play an important role.

However, the Swedish economy of today is mainly driven by services. They account for c. 60% of GDP. The largest sector is

commerce, which includes retail and wholesale trade. The fastest growing sectors are commerce and ICT services.

Services in 2012

Source: Statistics Sweden 2013

Services over time

Source: Statistics Sweden 2013

Industrial production accounts for c. 20% of GDP. Electric and electronic equipment has been the fastest growing sector during

the last 20 years, driven by the development of mobile telephony.

22.4%

16.9%

10.7% 10.0%

9.6%

8.1%

7.4%

7.0%

3.0%

2.8% 2.2% Commerce

Real estate services

IT & communication

Consultancy services

Transportation services

Finance & insurance

Education, care & social services

Rentals

Personal services

Hotels & restaurants

Advertising & marketing

,0

,50

,100

,150

,200

,250

SEKbn

IT & communication

Commerce

Real estate services

Other services

Industrial production in 2012

Source: Statistics Sweden 2013

Trade The total export value represents about 50% of the GDP. The export of goods is dominating, but the export of services is

growing faster. Tourism for example is one of the fastest growing sectors.

Exports of goods in 2012

Source: Statistics Sweden 2013

16.3%

14.9%

13.0%

12.2%

12.0%

12.0%

7.8%

5.8% 6.1%

Chemical & medical products

Ore, steel & metals

Mechanical engineering

Wood, pulp & paper

Electric & electronic equipment

Transport equipment

Foodstuffs

Rubber & plastics

Other products

16%

12%

12%

11% 11%

10%

10%

5%

2% 5%

6%

Mechanical engineering

Chemical products

Electric & electronic equipment

Ore, steel & metals

Transport equipment

Wood, pulp & paper

Oil, gas & electricity

Foodstuffs

Clothing & shoes

Other engineering products

Other goods

Total volume 2012:

SEK1,169bn

Exports of services in 2012

Source: Statistics Sweden 2013

Sweden’s main trade partners in 2012 – Exports

Country Volume (SEKbn) % of total

Norway 120,457 10.3%

Germany 114,580 9.8%

United Kingdom 90,066 7.7%

USA 74,998 6.4%

Denmark 74,622 6.4%

Finland 74,463 6.4%

Netherlands 61,260 5.2%

Belgium 55,384 4.7%

France 53,368 4.6%

China 37,766 3.2%

Other countries 412,288 35.3%

Total 1,169,252 100.0%

Source: Statistics Sweden 2013

The value of Swedish exports to Switzerland was SEK 13,8 billion in 2012.

Sweden’s main trade partners in 2012 – Imports

Country Volume (SEKbn) % of total

Germany 190,555 17.3%

Norway 100,689 9.1%

Denmark 93,217 8.5%

20%

15%

13% 9%

3%

1% 1%

38%

Tourism

Transportation services

IT & communication

Licenses & royalties

Finance & insurance

Building contracts

Public services, etc.

Other business services

Total volume 2012:

SEK516bn

Netherlands 72,327 6.6%

United Kingdom 72,169 6.6%

Russia 58,032 5.3%

Finland 55,861 5.1%

France 45,787 4.2%

China 44,786 4.1%

Belgium 41,051 3.7%

Other countries 326,520 29.7%

Total 1,100,994 100.0%

Source: Statistics Sweden 2013

The value of Swedish imports from Switzerland was SEK 9,9 billion in 2012.

ICT market

Net sales in 2007-2011 per sector

Source: IT&Telekomföretagen

14.4 15.4 14.3 16.8 19.8

12.6 13.2 12.5 14.2

17.0

14.8 15.1

12.3

15.1

17.0 9.8 9.5

8.6

10.8

11.3

51.7 53.2

47.7

56.8

65.2

--

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

EURbn

Software & IT services Telecom and data communication services Hardware manufacturing Resellers and service

Number of employees in 2007-2011 per sector

Source: IT&Telekomföretagen

Number of companies per company size 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Software & IT services 8,564 9,847 10,852 11,869 13,324

0 - 1 employee 4,728 5,520 6,192 6,940 7,948

2- 10 employees 2,926 3,335 3,581 3,799 4,139

11-100 employees 271 309 333 350 380

110-250 employees 608 648 708 742 817

251+ employees 31 35 38 38 40

Telecom and data communication services 461 534 587 650 728

0 - 1 employee 176 219 242 269 312

2- 10 employees 136 156 170 195 224

11-100 employees 117 124 138 150 154

110-250 employees 15 16 18 18 20

251+ employees 17 19 19 18 18

Hardware manufacturing 748 794 825 851 885

0 - 1 employee 270 299 316 335 361

2- 10 employees 307 316 331 330 332

11-100 employees 141 149 148 156 164

110-250 employees 16 16 16 15 14

251+ employees 14 14 14 15 14

Resellers and service 1,684 1,786 1,863 1,936 2,038

0 - 1 employee 649 705 772 834 940

71'518 79'190 85'577 88'709 94'683

31'513 32'326

32'339 31'164 32'608

32'080 33'825

33'399 32'543 33'144 16'131

17'168 17'296 17'684

18'450 151'242

162'509 168'611 170'100

178'885

--

20'000

40'000

60'000

80'000

100'000

120'000

140'000

160'000

180'000

200'000

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Software & IT services Telecom and data communication services Hardware manufacturing Resellers and service

2- 10 employees 726 767 767 781 760

11-100 employees 284 289 298 295 309

110-250 employees 17 16 19 18 21

251+ employees 8 9 7 8 8

Total 11,457 12,961 14,127 15,306 16,975

Source: IT&Telekomföretagen

3.7. KEY SWEDISH MARKET ENTRY POINTS

Entering a new market is an action that requires resources and includes risks. Each company considering an entry to the

Swedish ICT market needs to formulate a strategy or plan how to approach this task. Most likely, this plan is dependent on the

character of the specific company. In any case you need to do your home-work in terms of collecting the required information

before making strategic decisions.

It would make sense to utilize existing channels and infrastructure to gather information and build personal relationships.

There are several organizations with the mission to support this kind of activities.

Business Sweden

Business Sweden is a merger of the Swedish Trade Council and Invest Sweden, founded on January 1, 2013. Their mission is to

make Sweden more attractive to do business with. With their mission of identifying new business opportunities and having the

right contacts, they could be of assistance in finding the right partners, or assist SMEs in their match with Swedish companies.

See more at: http://www.business-sweden.se/en

One remarkable initiative by Business Sweden is the “Datacentre Initiative”. It was triggered by Facebook’s decision to set up a

large data centre in Luleå, in the very north of Sweden. Apart from the good infrastructure in terms of energy supply,

broadband capacity, skilled persons, etc. the decisive advantage for the location was the climate. It offers natural cooling,

which means lower costs and a better environmental performance.

Chambers of Commerce

There are eleven regional chambers of commerce in Sweden. They represent all parts of the country and have a strong local

presence with useful networks and contacts. More info at http://www.sverigeshandelskamrar.se/

Fairlink

Fairlink is an organization for trade fairs and exhibitions supporting both exhibitors and visitors. Their knowledge and network

could be useful for SMEs entering the Swedish market. See: www.fairlink.se

Swedish Incubators & Science Parks (SISP)

There is a non-profit association called Swedish Incubators & Science Parks (SISP) with national coverage. SISP has 64

members which “act as nodes in the regional Swedish innovation systems and together operate almost 80 creative

environments, offer business development, work with clusters, industrial project development arenas, seed capital funds and

more – effective collaboration with industry, public sector, universities and institutes.”28 As concrete meeting places for

industry and academia, the Swedish Incubators and Science Parks constitute contact points for enterprises looking for an

exchange between entrepreneurs, innovators and investors. www.sisp.se

Membership organizations

The Swedish Computer Society (Dataföreningen i Sverige) is the independent body for ICT professionals in Sweden.

The association has 20 000 members with local representation in all parts of the country. As well as providing an extensive

events program for their members, the association works with the government, the industry and the community on issues such

as enhancing digital literacy. See more at: www.dfs.se

28

www.sisp.se

Swedish IT and Telecom Industries (IT- & Telekomföretagen) is a member organization for companies of all sizes

within the IT and telecom sector. The main target is to promote and further develop the IT market and the conditions for IT

enterprises. The organization has about 1,000 member companies with nearly 101 000 employees in total.

Media

IDG is the leading IT media network in the Nordic region. They publish the weekly magazine “Computer Sweden” and have a

number of websites covering different areas in ICT, for example IT Security, IT in healthcare, etc. IDG organises a number of

yearly events, usually together with one or several partners in the specific area. See: www.idg.se.

Of course, there are other media actors as well, covering everything from technical details to general business issues.

In addition, there are bilateral arrangements between Sweden and Switzerland, such as the Swiss-Swedish Innovation

Initiative (SWII) and the Swiss Industrial Participation Program (SIP) in connection with the potential Gripen-deal with Saab.

A number of events and seminars are arranged within these programs, usually offering good opportunities to meet Swedish

company representatives and key persons.

The Swiss-Swedish Innovation Initiative (SWII)

SWII is a joint bilateral initiative with the overall objective to increase market oriented high-technology R&D projects between

Switzerland and Sweden.

The initiative is a result of the good bilateral relations between Swiss and Swedish research organizations and academia,

companies and innovation agencies.

The steering group behind the Initiative consists of The Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems VINNOVA, the

Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI), Business Sweden and the defense and security

company Saab.

Innovative Software is one of three R&D areas. The last event arranged by SWII in Winterthur, Switzerland in February 2013

gathered 84 participants from over 50 Swiss & Swedish organizations. In total, 135 one-to-one meetings were carried out

during the conference. The feed-back from participants indicates that this is a very convenient way to meet representatives for

Swedish companies and academia29. There is more to read at http://www.swii.org/

SIP and Gripen

Swiss Industrial Participation (SIP) is the term used for the offset deals that are part of a potential Gripen fighter jet deal. In

this case, it means that Saab and its partner companies are to enter into business deals with Swiss companies that are worth at

least 100 percent of the Gripen contract value. Saab can sign direct contracts with Swiss companies or arrange third-party

deals through partners and other firms to create new market and export opportunities.

The Gripen deal hasn’t been closed, but the preparations for the offset business are going on, involving numerous activities. So

far, at the end of 2012 Saab had already qualified offset business with more than 100 Swiss companies, valued at over CHF 250

million Swiss Francs. 75 percent of these companies are small and medium sized enterprises30.

The industrial participation can be direct (meaning that it refers to components for Gripen) or indirect (non-Gripen related

business).

Saab is arranging a number of events in different regions in Switzerland in order to inform about the SIP program. More

information about this can be found at http://saabgroup.com/en/Air/Gripen-Fighter-System/Gripen-and-

Switzerland/Industrial-partnership/.

29

http://www.swii.org/ 30

http://saabgroup.com/en/Air/Gripen-Fighter-System/Gripen-and-Switzerland/Industrial-partnership/Industrial-cooperation---How-it-works/

4. Accessing the Swedish ICT market

4.1. TRADE EVENTS

Numerous events taking place in Sweden during 2013 could be of interest for a Swiss ICT company. These are a few examples:

Table 14: Trade events

EVENT DATE LOCATION CHARACTER WEB-ADDRESS

IT Security Day 17 Sep Gothenburg Yearly event on IT Security http://csevent.idg.se/sakgbg201

3/

Nordic Shared Services

& Outsourcing Forum

8-9 Oct Stockholm Shared services, offshore,

outsourcing

http://www.ssonetwork.com/

eGovernment days 9-10 Oct Stockholm Yearly event on eGovernment http://www.bwz.se/HEXANOVA/

b.aspx?vi=12&vid=213&ucrc=9

D6690C9

Industry & Technology 16-17 Oct Stockholm Yearly event http://www.industri-teknik.com/

Software development

day

24 Oct Gothenburg Yearly event http://www.lindholmen.se/en

IT Strategy Day 26 Nov Stockholm Yearly event on IT Strategy http://csevent.idg.se/strategi201

3/

IT in healthcare Day 27 Nov Stockholm Yearly event, IT in Healthcare http://csevent.idg.se/itivarden20

13/

4.2. START-UP INFRASTRUCTURE

Legal framework It is easy to start a business in Sweden. There is a website, www.verksamt.se, where you can register all the required

information and even get support to write a business plan. An English version is available, too. The Swedish Companies

Registration Office (Bolagsverket) is the registrar of all companies and associations in Sweden.

Before setting up a business in Sweden, you have to choose a specific set-up. There are different types of businesses. The most

common ones are31:

Sole trader

Sole trader may be appropriate if you are going to start a business on your own. As a sole trader, you are personally responsible

for all the company's obligations, such as liabilities and agreements.

Limited company

A limited liability company can be started by one or more individuals. When starting a limited liability company, you must

have at least SEK 50,000 in share capital. Personal responsibility for the company's debts is in principle limited to the share

capital.

31

https://www.verksamt.se/en/web/international/starting/types-of-business

Trading partnership

A trading partnership is an alternative if at least two individuals wish to start a business together. There is no requirement to

invest capital, although the partners are personally, jointly and severally liable for the company's debts.

Economic association

Three people are required in order to start an economic association. An economic association must promote the economic

interests of its members. This means that the members must benefit financially from their participation in the association.

Opening a branch

A foreign company wishing to operate in Sweden without registering a subsidiary may open a branch. A branch is a foreign

company's local office in Sweden with its own administration and corporate identity number. It is an independent entity which

conducts business transactions in its own name, acting on behalf of the company. The branch must have a managing director.

Supporting bodies There are different public organizations and clusters or incubators with the mission to support start-ups. The character of the

business will be decisive for the selection of suitable contacts.

The Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth

The Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth (Tillväxtverket), www.tillvaxtverket.se, has the role to strengthen

regional development and facilitate enterprises and entrepreneurship throughout Sweden.

The map shows regions that are entitled to regional subsidizing for investments. There are two different levels, A and B.

You could get the impression that most of Sweden is in need of regional support, but the background is the on-going

urbanization and consolidation of industries that leave the remote and sparsely populated areas with a further decreasing

population.

The following table roughly shows the maximum levels of support. Each application is individually evaluated.

TYPE OF INVESTMENT SMALL COMPANIES MID-SIZE

COMPANIES

BIG

COMPANIES

Premises, machinery, patents A: 35%

B: 30%

A: 25%

B: 20%

A: 15%

B: 10%

Premises for renting A: 25%

B: 20%

A: 25%

B: 20%

A: 25%

B: 20%

Consultancy, trade fairs, exhibitions 50% 50% 0%

Special education 40% 40% 30%

Development before start of business 40% 40% 0%

European structural funds

European Structural Funds are one of the EU’s key instruments for fulfilling the goals of the Lisbon strategy. The aim of this

strategy is to make Europe the world’s most competitive knowledge-based economy with sustainable growth, respect for the

environment and greater social cohesion. The current program period is 2007-2013. Sweden has participated in 22 programs,

eight Regional Structural Fund Programs and 13 Territorial Co-operation Programs that are financed by the European

Regional Development Fund. These are supplemented by the European Social Fund Program. Sweden has received about EUR

1.6 billion during the period and has additionally contributed with the same amount as national co-funding32.

The new period is 2014-2020. The preparations for this period are on-going. Lessons learned from the previous period indicate

that the focus of the projects will be more specific and the monitoring and follow-up will be more concentrated on results.

The Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth (Tillväxtverket) is the coordinator for the regional funds. Sweden is

divided into eight regions that all work with regional competitiveness and employment. The activities cover most of the

business and society areas, but in practically all regions, ICT has been specifically mentioned in the on-going program.

Enterprise Europe Network in Sweden

The Enterprise Europe Network is the largest network of contact points providing information and advice to EU companies on

EU matters, in particular to SMEs. The network offers contact points for companies in more than 40 countries, including

Switzerland.

In Sweden, 15 business and research organizations make up the Enterprise Europe Network in Sweden, with offices in more

than 20 cities. This network is mainly targeting Swedish SMEs, but could be an interesting point of contact also for a Swiss

company. See http://www.enterpriseeurope.se/omnatverket/inenglish

The Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth (Tillväxtverket) is the Swedish network coordinator, which also

finances the network in Sweden together with the European Commission.

Business Sweden

Business Sweden is jointly owned by the Swedish government and the industry, represented by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs

and the Swedish Foreign Trade Association. The shared ownership provides access to contacts and networks at all levels. The

mission is to strengthen Sweden as an attractive business partner, including facilitating for foreign actors to invest in Sweden.

Business Sweden has 57 offices abroad, among them one in Zürich. www.business-sweden.se/en/Contact/Our-offices-

abroad/Switzerland/

The Swiss-Swedish Innovation Initiative (SWII)

SWII is a joint bilateral initiative with the overall objective to increase market oriented high-technology R&D projects between

Switzerland and Sweden. SWII is described in section 2.7.

SIP and Gripen

Swiss Industrial Participation (SIP) is described in section 2.7.

Incubators

Incubators assist entrepreneurs with active and appropriate management, technical, commercial and financial network as well

as a creative growth environment. The process of incubators aims at providing knowledge companies with innovative

approaches to economic development that in turn accelerate business growth. An incubator provides effective tools for new

companies in tomorrow’s industry. Swedish Incubators & Science Parks (SISP) is the umbrella organization covering all

regions. See more at: www.sisp.se

4.3. REGULATORY ISSUES

Sweden is a member of the European Union. Legislation, directives and regulations from the EU are normally fully

incorporated in Swedish regulations. Taxation and employment issues are complex regulations but necessary to be familiar

32

www.tillvaxtverket.se/EU-program

with when entering the Swedish market. Information about these regulations can be found at the supporting bodies mentioned

above.

It is important to know that some regulations might be emphasized stronger in Sweden than in other countries.

4.3.1. The principle of public access to official documents

Public access to all official documents is a cornerstone in the Swedish Constitution. The principle of public access means that

the general public and the media are guaranteed insight into the activities of central government and the municipal authorities.

This means that:

Everyone – Swedish and foreign citizens alike – are entitled to read the authorities' public documents to the extent that

documents are not classified (secret).

Officials and other people who work for the central government or the municipal authorities have the right to tell outside

parties what they know to the extent that they are not limited by any confidentiality obligation.

Officials also have special freedoms to provide information to the media.

Court proceedings are open to the public.

A document is official if it is held by a public authority and, according to special rules, is considered to have been received or

drawn up there. The document may be an ordinary paper document, or it may just as well be a written or pictorial matter or

recording which can only be read, listened to or otherwise comprehended using technical aids. See more at:

http://www.domstol.se/Funktioner/English/#sthash.URLnBdVv.dpuf

4.3.2. Public Procurement

Public procurement in Sweden is governed by the Swedish Public Procurement Act (2007:1091 – LOU), which is largely based

on the EU Directive 2004/18/EC concerning public procurement. The procurement rules (LOU) aim at ensuring that

contracting authorities, such as central government authorities, local government authorities and county councils, use public

funds to finance public purchases in the best possible way by seeking out and taking advantage of competition in the relevant

market in order to get a good deal. At the same time, the rules and regulations aim at providing suppliers with the opportunity

to compete for public procurement on equal terms. The value of public procurement in Sweden is c. SEK 500bn per year.

LOU is based on five fundamental principles:

1. The principle of non-discrimination

The ‘principle of non-discrimination’ stipulates that it is prohibited to discriminate suppliers, directly or indirectly, on the

grounds of nationality. For example, the contracting authority may not include requirements that only Swedish companies are

aware of or can perform in the contract documents, or give preference to a local company.

2. The principle of equal treatment

All suppliers should be treated equally and be placed on an equal footing. All suppliers must, for instance, have access to the

same information at the same time.

3. The principle of transparency

The contracting authority is obliged to create transparency by providing information about the procurement procedure and

how it will be conducted. Contract documents must be plain and clear and contain all of the requirements regarding

the subject matter of the contract.

4. The principle of proportionality

The requirements imposed by the specification must be both appropriate and necessary to achieve the aim of the public

procurement. If there are several alternatives, the alternative chosen should be the one which is the least intrusive or onerous

for the suppliers.

5. The principle of mutual recognition

Diplomas and certificates issued and authorized by an EU/EEA Member State shall also be valid and applicable in other

EU/EEA countries.

The Swedish Competition Authority is the supervisory body for public procurement. Among other things, this happens through

the conducting of investigations on its initiative, enquiries following suggestions, complaints received, as well as through

regular contact with contracting authorities, suppliers and other stakeholders. The Swedish Competition Authority may

also bring court proceedings relating to public procurement damage fine.

4.3.3. The Personal Data Act

The Personal Data Act (PDA) is based on Directive 95/46/EC. The PDA is the most important Swedish legal instrument on

data protection and applies to automatic processing of personal data and, in certain cases, manual processing of personal data

on traditional paper-based files. The PDA applies to both the public and private sector, and contains provisions to protect

individuals' privacy from being violated by the processing of personal data.

The PDA applies to all types of personal data, that is, data that is directly or indirectly referable to an existing natural person.

For example, an Internet Protocol address (IP address) is deemed as personal data, as long as the IP address in conjunction

with additional information can identify the individual using the IP address.

The PDA is technology-neutral and applies to the processing of personal data that is wholly or partly performed with the aid of

computers or similar equipment being capable of automatically processing personal data. The PDA also applies to manual

registers or filing systems if the personal data is included or is intended to be included in a structured collection making the

personal data available for searching or compilation according to specific criteria. However, the PDA does not apply to personal

data that an individual collects and maintains in an activity of purely private nature.

The PDA regulates all types of processing of personal data, and states that personal data in structured material can only be

collected for specific, explicitly stated and legitimate purposes. Hence, personal data cannot be reprocessed for any purpose

that is incompatible with the original purpose. Generally, the PDA states that personal data can only be processed if the data

subject has given its consent to the processing.

The Data Inspection Board is the supervisory authority under the Personal Data Act.

4.3.4. The Patient Data Act

The rules for the processing of personal data in health services are collected in the Patient Data Act (Patientdatalagen), which

came into force in 2008.

The Act regulates, among other things:

Cohesive journaling, which means that many health care providers can give and get direct access to each other's

medical records if they meet the patient legislation.

Internal secrecy – a regulation, which implies that only those who need a certain piece of information in their work

within the health services may have access to patient data.

The patient’s right to block data in both the caregiver's medical record and other health care providers at coherent

journaling.

Caregivers’ opportunity to provide direct patient access, including via the Internet, care documentation and logs (i.e.

the history of the treatment of personal data).

The Patient Data Act is supplemented by a regulation from the Ministry of Social Affairs and regulations on

information management and record keeping in health care from the National Board of Health and Welfare.

4.3.5. Archiving accounting data

Especially in connection with transfer to cloud environments, it is important to be aware of the regulations about archiving

accounting data. Accounting data on a detailed level (verifications) must be stored physically or electronically during a

minimum of seven years inside Sweden.

5. Recommendations

5.1. BACKGROUND AND RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

In general, Sweden is an open economy where companies and consumers are eager to find new products and services. This is

especially valid in the dynamic ICT sector. There are no reasons why a Swiss company would not be successful in this market,

provided the offering is competitive. The competition is always there and in some segments it is really fierce. Switzerland as a

country and economy is highly regarded. Also, the recent development in connection with PRISM in the US has increased the

general interest for non-US technology and solutions.

Switzerland is not among the top trading partners and Swiss ICT companies are practically un-known to most people. This is

something worth considering in the planning and in the first business contacts.

The Gripen-deal (whether it will be fulfilled or not) is a unique opportunity for Swiss ICT companies to meet and approach

potential customers and partners.

The Swiss-Swedish Innovation Initiative is based upon good experiences from cooperation between Swiss and Swedish

organizations in R&D projects. Both sides want to expand this cooperation. This is a positive starting point for an R&D

oriented company.

5.2. TARGET SUB-SECTORS AND MARKET OPPORTUNITIES

Competitive offerings are of potential interest in all segments of the market. For an individual company the target segments are

most likely determined by the character of the business. If a product or service is competitive in Switzerland, the probability is

high that the same is valid in Sweden. The two countries have many similarities.

In general terms, it would make sense to focus on growth segments. Services and products that are of a “commodity-type” are

under price pressure. Cutting costs is the main driving force for customers in these segments. Traditional outsourcing,

hardware distribution and application management are examples of these segments. Apart from the expected growth in a

segment, the actual size of the segment is important. Some of the segments with high growth are in fact rather small, for

example the game industry. On the other hand, outsourcing is probably the largest segment, but with limited growth prospects.

Competition, especially from Swedish companies, is also something to pay attention to. Traditionally, services related to mobile

computing and Internet have many strong Swedish suppliers.

In traditional sales work, you normally try to identify the customers’ problems and find a match with your offerings: “If you

have these problems, I might be able to help you”. If this reasoning is applied on macro level for the ICT market in Sweden,

there are some areas with potential for improvements.

Ehealth

The Swedish market for ehealth is fragmented, consisting of many systems and players. The potential for cost-savings and

more concentrated efforts on innovation and development is considerable. This is a top-priority segment with public funding.

Global players with another scale of economy have difficulties to enter the market due to local regulations and other barriers.

The responsible authorities are aware of this and have taken actions to enable competition.

IT security

IT security is a major concern across all sectors of Swedish societal and business life.

Industrial IT

Industrial IT is a focus area in Sweden. ABB, the Swiss-Swedish company, is in fact a world leader in some of the areas within

this segment. The manufacturing industry is still very important for Sweden and the pressure to compete with lower-cost

countries is high. Flexibility, time to market, decentralized manufacturing; those are key words that are changing the nature of

manufacturing at the moment. For Sweden, it is vital to be in a front position in this development.

Internet of Things

RFID is in fact a rather old technology. It has been used in special applications for decades. The latest technical development

has made it possible to produce transponders of almost any size at a lower cost. This has widened the scope of potential

application areas considerably. RFID in connection with the Internet is a newer combination and finally, smart sensors

represent a new technology with big potential. Internet of Things is a hot area globally and also in Sweden.

Old systems in banking

ERP-systems are generally quite old in Swedish companies. Investments have been made in add-on functionality in areas such

as e-commerce, Business Intelligence, web-portals, etc. Still, the core engine is getting old and needs an update. There seems to

be an accumulated need to replace the old systems.

The same problem can be seen in some of the banks. Mission-critical back-office systems are surprisingly old. This constitutes

a real problem and risk. The required competences are increasingly rare, simply because people with the respective know-how

are retiring. Internet-banking has been a focus area for many years and investments in the core systems have been postponed.

These projects are regarded as highly risky. This could be an opportunity for Swiss ICT companies working with relevant

experiences with Swiss banks.

5.3. MARKET ENTRY STRATEGIES

What is the best way to enter the Swedish market? Clearly, this very much depends on the character of the company and the

business. Are the customers in the target segment Swedish consumers or a few large companies or organizations? What

financial and human resources could be allocated? The following alternatives are general ways to enter a market.

Sell directly from Switzerland

Switzerland is not that far from Sweden. Theoretically, it would be possible to sell a certain kind of services from Switzerland

without local presence, for example mobile applications or Internet services. Market communication and support issues must

be managed remotely.

Open a branch office

A branch office shows that you have an actual presence in Sweden. You need an address and a responsible manager at

minimum.

Follow your customer

If the company has a good business relation with a customer in Switzerland who is present in Sweden already or plans to enter

this market, it would be possible to extend this partnership to Sweden.

Acquisition

As indicated, there are lots of small Swedish ICT companies with good ideas and sophisticated products. There is a good chance

that the owners are interested in possibilities to scale up their business or even sell the company. The main risk with knowledge

based companies is that the competence might walk away.

Partnership/joint venture/subcontracting

A Swiss company can have an established partnership with another company already present in Sweden. This partnership

could be expanded to include the Swedish market as well. Certified partnerships with SAP and Microsoft are a couple of

examples. A partnership could also mean that two complementary suppliers join forces, case by case or more permanently.

A Swiss company could also operate as a subcontractor to another company with a stronger position in Sweden. The lines of

responsibility would be more straight-forward in this case, but the total dependence on the main contractor constitutes a risk.

R&D and SWII

The Swiss Swedish Innovation Initiative (SWII) is an excellent way to establish contacts with potential Swedish customers and

partners, especially if you would develop a project application together, which hopefully gets approved.

EU FP7 calls within the suitable area of expertise are also a possibility to establish contacts.

Distributor

Finding a suitable distributor for your product or service is an alternative as well. However, this would be more appropriate for

physical goods or commodities.

SIP

Again, the Gripen deal is worth mentioning. Saab will deliver industrial cooperation under the umbrella of the Swiss Industrial

Participation Programme (SIP) amounting to 100 percent of the Gripen contract value. In other words, Saab is actively

searching for potential contractors. Innovative software is one focus area. The business does not have to be directly linked to

Gripen.

5.4. MARKET AND TRADING RISK FACTORS

Sweden is a stable country with healthy finances. However, it is a small, export-oriented economy and thus very vulnerable for

disturbances in the main export markets. The financial difficulties in parts of Europe have affected the Swedish export industry

and are still seen as a major risk and uncertainty by the Government and the export industry.

Currency risk

Sweden is not a member of the Eurozone. The currency, Swedish crowns, is a small currency and should theoretically be more

volatile than the Euro or US dollars. During the last years it has been remarkably stable though and representatives for the

export industry have expressed a clear opinion that it is too strong.

Compliance with regulations

It is essential to be well informed about regulations in taxation and employment issues. Sophisticated planning to avoid

taxation in Sweden might be risky if it is extensive.

Retaining key persons

If an enterprise enters a partnership with a Swedish company or plans an acquisition, it is essential to identify the key persons

and safeguard that they will stay at least until the expected business achievements have been reached.

5.5. SUCCESS FACTORS

In general, Sweden is probably not very different from any other Western European market. Basic principles in marketing and

sales apply. The following factors might be more typical Swedish aspects in business to business cases.

Obviously, the product and service offered must be competitive. This should be carefully evaluated and secured, preferably by

personal meetings or tests with potential customers, before entering the market. Don’t misinterpret the reactions. Swedes are

normally polite and a statement as “This looks interesting” could actually mean something else. In any case, direct personal

meetings are highly recommended.

Trust is very important in Swedish business life. A hand-shake is regarded as a contractual agreement. Therefore you need to

be careful with promises and work hard to keep the ones made. Words (good or bad) spread swiftly in the business community.

Credibility is equally important and is linked to trust-building. However, credibility can be enforced by good and relevant

reference cases. This is especially important for companies that are unknown to the customers.

Whatever the product or service is, it is necessary to demonstrate expertise. If you meet experts from the customer side, make

sure you have the relevant knowledge at hand. The manager who takes the decision will listen to his/her expert.

Decision-making in Swedish companies and organizations is often perceived as strange and difficult to understand by foreign

companies. In ICT matters, it is common practice that the management (especially in SMEs) involves potential users during

the evaluation process. The final decision is taken by the responsible manager, but the input from users is taken seriously.

Usability aspects are therefore very important, as well as the ability to communicate your message to user representatives.

Public procurement is strictly regulated in Sweden. If you are not familiar with the rules, it is recommended to involve an

expert in this area. This will save time and money.

5.6. CONCLUSIONS

As stated earlier, Switzerland is not among the largest Swedish trade partners. Switzerland is not a member of the EU. Swiss

ICT companies are not well-known. Entering the Swedish market will therefore include an element of breaking new ground.

However, this is most likely the case whenever you enter a new market.

The Swedish market is open and used to international suppliers. There are no obvious reasons why Swiss ICT companies would

not be successful, provided their offering is competitive. Switzerland as an economy and country has long been admired in

Sweden. “Swiss Made” brings associations with high quality and reliability. These are positive values in Sweden (and in the

other Nordic countries). All in all, this makes a good starting for Swiss companies approaching the Swedish market.

Together with Norway, Germany is Sweden’s main trade partner. Even if ICT products and services are not a major part of this

trade, it indicates that products and services from Germany are highly competitive in Sweden. This is not because they are the

cheapest. Somehow it seems that Swiss products and services have similar characteristics.

The Nordic countries are very similar with an extensive cooperation in many areas. They don’t form one single market, but if

you are successful in Sweden it is likely that the same can be achieved in the other countries. Travelling between the Nordics is

convenient, which means that local presence in all countries may not be necessary. The business potential is considerable.

Currently, there are some bilateral initiatives to strengthen trade and cooperation between Switzerland and Sweden. This

creates an opportunity for Swiss ICT companies to utilize this infrastructure for personal meetings with potential Swedish

customers and partners.

6. Useful contacts

6.1. GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATIONS

The Swedish Post and Telecom Authority (PTS)

The Swedish Post and Telecom Authority (PTS) monitors the electronic communications and postal sectors in Sweden.

‘Electronic communications’ includes telephony, Internet and radio. The Authority works with consumer and competition

issues, efficient utilization of resources and secure communications. www.pts.se

The Ministry of Enterprise, Energy and Communications

The Ministry of Enterprise, Energy and Communications is responsible for issues concerning regional development, energy,

transport, infrastructure, information technology and the business sector. http://www.government.se/sb/d/2067/a/217332

E-delegation

To strengthen the development of eGovernment and create good opportunities for inter-agency coordination, a delegation for

eGovernment has been established, the E-delegation. The Delegation is required to coordinate the eGovernment development

projects of government agencies and to follow up their impact on citizens, business operators and public administration

employees. A further task of the Delegation is to coordinate specific IT standardization issues and assist the Government in its

international work in this area. www.edelegationen.se

Kammarkollegiet

Kammarkollegiet is the oldest public authority in Sweden. It dates back to 1539, when Gustav Vasa established a "chamber" to

deal with tax collection and the auditing of public accounts. Today, the Agency is a modern organization which not only

exercises public authority, but also operates commercial undertakings. Among these is the responsibility to sign frame

agreements for ICT services for public authorities. http://www.kammarkollegiet.se/

The Swedish Agency for Public Management (Statskontoret)

The Swedish Agency for Public Management provides the Government and Ministries with relevant, concrete and useful

documentation for reassessment and rationalization decisions. The Agency does this through:

investigations, evaluations and follow-ups of state and state-funded activities

analyses of activities and public agencies in terms of efficiency, e.g. in its public-agency analyses

reports on the impact of central government measures

http://www.statskontoret.se/in-english/

The Swedish Data Inspection Board (Datainspektionen)

The Data Inspection Board is a public authority. The task is to protect the individual's privacy in the information society

without unnecessarily preventing or complicating the use of new technology. http://www.datainspektionen.se/in-english/

Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB)

The task of the MSB is to enhance and support societal capacities for preparedness for and prevention of emergencies and

crises. When such an event does occur, the Agency supports the stakeholders involved by taking the right measures to control

the situation. www.msb.se

The Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth (Tillväxtverket)

The Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth’s (Tillväxtverket) role is to strengthen regional development and

facilitate enterprise and entrepreneurship throughout Sweden. www.tillvaxtverket.se

The Swedish Competition Authority (Konkurrensverket)

The Swedish Competition Authority works to safeguard and increase competition and supervise public procurement in

Sweden. www.konkurrensverket.se

6.2. TRADE, MEMBERSHIP AND PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

Chambers of Commerce

There are eleven regional chambers of commerce in Sweden. They represent all parts of Sweden. More info at

http://www.sverigeshandelskamrar.se/

Dataföreningen

Dataföreningen is an independent non-profit association with the target to promote healthy use of ICT in Sweden.

Dataföreningen is a well-established organization with many activities such as training, events, network meetings all around

Sweden. https://www.dfs.se/

IT & Telekomföretagen

Swedish IT and Telecom Industries is a member organization for companies of all sizes within the IT and telecom sector. The

organization has about 1,000 member companies with nearly 101 000 employees in total. Swedish IT and Telecom Industries

is one of seven branch and employer associations that work together as Almega. http://www.itotelekomforetagen.se/

Swedish Association of Software Industry (Svensk Programvaruindustri, SPI)

The Swedish Association of Software Industry, SPI, is an association of Swedish producers of software products. The main goal

for SPI is to improve the business conditions in Sweden and EU for software production. SPI supports its members in their

business activities in order to create a platform for good relations between member companies for mutual exchange of

information and co-operation. http://www.swedishsoftware.org/

RFID Nordic

RFID Nordic is a non-profit branch association for all manufacturers, retailers, consultants as well as consumers and others

interested in RFID solutions. The Association was founded in 2004 and has more than 60 members and a global network for

exchange of information.

RFID Nordic has two main purposes with its activities. One is to create a cluster of competence around the RFID applications

and services in Northern Europe. The other is to provide the media, academia, politicians and administrators with neutral

information about RFID. http://rfidnordic.se/

Swedsoft

Swedsoft is a cross-boundary Swedish industry initiative to strengthen the country’s competitiveness with regards to software.

www.swedsoft.se

Virtual meeting places

There are a number of virtual meeting places with many active networks around ICT matters in Sweden. Just to mention one

international place: www.meetup.com. There are several networks under this global umbrella:

http://www.meetup.com/Stockholm-TechMeetups/

http://www.meetup.com/Startup-Grind-Stockholm/

http://www.meetup.com/Sthlm-Startups/

A quote from Sthlm Startups:

“So we’re starting STHLM Startups! We wanted to give the entrepreneurial movement that already exists a name and a

voice. We wanted to give it a vessel that would be grass-root, not a high-level governmental initiative. We’re 8 companies

that start this initiative; it might grow, it might change but it will be the beginning of a new startup scene is Stockholm. One

that isn’t about Sweden but ultimately about changing the world through the innovation and growth of these companies.”

6.3. REGULATORY BODIES

The Swedish Data Inspection Board (Datainspektionen) The Data Inspection Board is a public authority with about 40 employees, the majority of whom are lawyers.

The Data Inspection Board's task is to protect the individual's privacy in the information society without unnecessarily

preventing or complicating the use of new technology. The Board supervises that authorities, companies, organizations and

individuals follow:

the Personal Data Act (1998)

the Data Act (1973)

the Debt Recovery Act (1974)

the Credit Information Act (1973)

the Patient Data Act (2008)

More info: www.datainspektionen.se

Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB) The task of the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB) is to enhance and support societal capacities for preparedness for

and prevention of emergencies and crises. When one does occur, the MSB supports the stakeholders involved by taking the

right measures to control the situation.

Information security is a support task to increase the quality of societal services. The MSB has the task of supporting and

coordinating work with societal information security. The MSB’s task is aimed at everything from other authorities and

municipalities to the private sector and individual people.

On 1st February 2010, the MSB’s Regulations on information security at government authorities (MSBFS 2009:10) came into

force.

These regulations stipulate that government authorities must apply a management system for information security. This

entails, among other things, a requirement for authorities to classify their information, to identify and manage risks, and to

continually evaluate and improve their security.

In addition, the MSB decides, which civil authorities and other vital societal services should be allocated nationally approved

cryptographic services to allow for secure cross-sector cooperation. The MSB has the right to issue regulations for civil

authorities in the field of communications security protection.

CERT- SE is Sweden’s national Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) tasked with supporting societal work on

dealing with and preventing IT incidents. Since 1 January 2011, CERT-SE has been a part of the MSB. Some of CERT-SE’s tasks

are to respond promptly when IT incidents occur, cooperate with authorities that have specific tasks in the field of information

security, and act as Sweden’s point of contact for equivalent services in other countries.

For more info see: www.msb.se

See also: www.cert.se

The Swedish Competition Authority (Konkurrensverket) The Swedish Competition Authority is a state authority working to safeguard and increase competition and supervise public

procurement in Sweden. Their task is to establish efficient competition in the private and public sectors benefitting consumers,

and efficient public procurement benefitting society and participants in the markets.

The supervision activities are prioritized with an orientation towards illegal direct award of contracts. New rules were included

in the Swedish Public Procurement Act from 15 July 2010. These rules give the Swedish Competition Authority the possibility

to take cases of illegal direct award of contracts to court.

For more info: http://www.kkv.se/

The Swedish Post and Telecom Authority (PTS) PTS supervises Internet service providers to ensure that competition is functioning and that provisions concerning privacy

protection are being complied with.

PTS's other tasks include working continuously to improve network robustness, as well as supporting the work of society as

regards protection against IT incidents.

PTS is the National Regulatory Authority according to the Qualified Electronic Signatures Act and the Qualified Electronic

Signatures ordinance.

The PTS provides various market information in English and Swedish (e.g. broadband map, people with access to mobile).

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