Worldwide enterprise software revenue is expected to grow by 4.5 per cent to surpass USD 232 billion in revenue in 2010 and touch USD 297 billion by 2014, research firm Gartner said today.

Gartner expects revenues from enterprise software sales to grow from USD 222.4 billion in 2009 to USD 246.6 billion in 2011.

"After declining 2.6 per cent in 2009, the worldwide market for enterprise software is recovering well with signs of continuing growth on the horizon," Gartner Managing Vice President Joanne Correia said.

Correia added that ageing systems, greater demand for security and the need to align software with business requirements were the key decision factors for buyers.

While Western Europe is expected to grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 2.7 per cent (till 2014), Asia Pacific is forecast to grow by 11.5 per cent.

Gartner said emerging regions like Asia/Pacific and Latin America, which were less affected by the economic downturn, are expected to invest heavily in enterprise software over the next few years as part of expanding their IT infrastructure.

Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan) is expected to grow the fastest. It is estimated to reach USD 22 billion in 2010, up 13 per cent from 2009 revenue of USD 19.5 billion.

"China and India continue to be the growth engine of the software market in the region and currently represent the largest and the fourth-largest software markets in Asia/Pacific," Gartner Research Director Yanna Dharmasthira said.

India has much local market potential, while the country's continuing integration with key global economies is generating software revenue growth in all key industries, Dharmasthira added.