Viva IT Mexico!

Some exciting news today from just south of the Texas border.

Today, IBM announced its first ever Innovation Center in Mexico, where local start-ups, VCs, developers and academics can come together to build new skills and drive innovation across a wide range of industries.

This new center in Mexico joins a global network of 39 Innovation Centers in 32 countries (others include Brazil, Vietnam, Philippines, South Africa, among others).

The new center is the first to open in 2011 as IBM marks its Centennial anniversary and 84-year presence in Mexico.  Starting today, IBM will offer Mexican start-up companies no charge access to IBM Software, researchers, technical and business experts to help develop and launch new business ideas through the IBM Global Entrepreneur initiative.

“Mexico is experiencing significant growth in IT opportunities,” said Hugo Santana, General Manager, IBM Mexico, about the announcement. “With access to the right skills and resources, we can build a stronger Mexican IT community that is prepared to compete on the global IT innovation stage.”

Industry analyst firm BMI predicts IT spending in Mexico will continue to increase 11 percent in 2011 to US$13.6 billion.

This IT growth is fueled by new government services and support infrastructure projects and growing interest in cloud computing across many industries. While the Mexican software opportunity is projected to grow in 2011, an estimated 80 percent of the US$2.5 billion spent on software will be imported.

In support of the growing IT opportunity, the new Mexico City IBM Innovation Center will provide local entrepreneurs, IBM business partners and academics with access to training workshops, consulting services, a broad technical infrastructure, and hands-on assistance to help bring new technologies to market.

Last year, IBM Innovation Centers assisted more than 24,000 business partners with workshops, seminars, and consultations to help build their skills and develop solutions using open standards and IBM technologies. The centers offer training and access to open standards-based and emerging technologies such as cloud computing, mobile computing, business analytics, and industry-focused solutions.

Visit here to learn more about the Mexico IBM Innovation Center.