Over the past three years, internet usage and awareness has grown in Luxembourg just as it has throughout Europe.  In 1995, NUA reported that about 45% of Europeans had no idea what the internet was -- that number has now decreased to about 3%.  (Source:  NUA Internet Surveys, Surge of Awareness of the Internet in Europe, March 1999.)

In Luxembourg, the population is highly skilled, has available funds, and easy access to the internet; these factors would seem to contribute to their relatively high penetration rates.
 

        European Countries with Highest Percentage of Home Internet Access

Country	Percentage of Population
Sweden	18.5%
Finland	9.5%
Germany	8.9%
Luxembourg	8.6%
United Kingdom	5.3%

Source:  NUA Internet Survey, www. nua.ie/surveys

8.2    Private Sector Growth (Industries and Segments)

Financial services and related industries (pension funds, insurance companies) are the main areas of growth in Luxembourg.  This industry is heavily automated and dependent on IT currently, and will become even more so in the future as companies seek to further reduce costs through automation.

    Case in Point

Fleming Asset Management, Luxembourg, which manages US$6.3 billion in assets and has embarked on a massive three-year IT project called Quantum.  The ultimate goal of the systems' revamping is "for no one to touch the transaction as it is processed through the system."  (Source:  Global Investment Technology, "Fleming's Quatum Seeks High-Tech Efficiency for Money Management Funds Worldwide."
(Source:  The Banker, "The Lure of Luxembourg," London, May 1999.)

    Case in Point

Millicom International Cellular has introduced GiSMo, an internet-based payment system for online shopping using Global System for Mobile communications phones which is a secure payment alternative to using a credit or debit card.  At GiSMo's processing center in Luxembourg, a randomly generated PIN number is automatically assigned to each customer transaction.

8.3    Evaluation of Domestic IT Users

The population of Luxembourg is well-educated and many work in highly sophisticated fields which are driven by the use of IT.  All of these factors contribute to the country's relatively high penetration rates for IT in industry and at home.
 
 

Country	PC's Installed (Millions)
United States	155.0
Western Europe (Aggregated)	82.6
Germany	21.0
France	13.0
Luxembourg	.6

Source:  Industry Insider (TM) by the Investext Group, www.investext.com

Return to main menu for Luxembourg
 

Go forward to IT Labor Market

Go back to Software Development