Bright Spots in Recession’s Gloom

With major companies like Intel (INTC), Sprint Nextel Corp. (S) and Microsoft (MSFT) announcing massive layoffs, it’s hard to find a ray of hope in the beleaguered IT and telecom sectors.

Well, maybe not that hard. In fact, a range of companies from the gargantuan to the very small have announced impressive results recently, leading to the conclusion that, at least for tech and telecoms, the recession might not be as deep or as prolonged as many fear.

IBM (IBM), for example, last week announced quarterly profits of $4.4 billion, up 64 percent from the same period a year ago. Also forecasting annual earnings of $9.20 a share, IBM saw its share price rise more than 4 percent and led a tech stock rally that buoyed other major tech stars including Cisco (CSCO) and Hewlett-Packard (HPQ).

Google Inc. (GOOG) similarly defied the gloom, slightly bettering Wall Street expectations for its quarterly results on Jan. 23 and helping the Nasdaq gain nearly 2 percent. Apple (AAPL), meanwhile, pierced the confusion and misinformation regarding chairman Steve Jobs’ health to post its best quarter ever.

The silver linings are not limited to large public companies. Buoyed by several key partnerships including a deal with Yahoo!, VoIP service provider Jajah sees 2009 as “a big growth year for us,” CEO Trevor Healy told VON last week. Unlike stand-alone VoIP providers who’ve seen their margins slashed in the last year, Jajah is working with large cable companies and telcos to offer branded services through an OEM model.

Virtual-phone-number provider Voxbone, meanwhile, says its revenues grew 70 percent last year and it expects another strong year in ’09. Enjoying increasing demand for local calling service in foreign markets and cheap international transport, The Brussels-based company recently turned a profit for the first time and is growing its revenues by 15 percent quarter-to-quarter, said CEO Rod Ullens.

Also making headway in the economic slide is Skype, which was acquired by eBay (EBAY) in 2005, and which is still enjoying growth even as it faces some challenges ahead, especially in terms of enhancing its revenue per user. According to eBay’s most recent earnings report, Skype managed to increase its revenues by 26 percent (to $145 million) in its most recent quarter compared to the same period last year.