The way in which companies pay for their IT requirements will change a lot as they will be charged for their usage rather than per computer, an expert has reasoned.

Vice-president of large enterprises at business software provider SAP David Keene made his comments to the Intellect Annual Regent Conference 2009, one of the biggest technology events in the UK calendar.

He said: "What you are likely to see is the way we pay for IT is going to change … paying on consumption rather than paying by central processing unit."

Despite this, Mr Keene said that standardised technology would be required by many to ensure that such services and platforms "float together in easier and easier patterns".

This software option may become more viable if a recent study by Forrester Research is correct in its expectations. The economic downturn is predicted to lead to a cut in global IT spending of three per cent, in turn resulting in many businesses turning to online services to reduce costs, it continued.

According to a recent survey by Connect, the two biggest IT headaches for businesses were 'everyday hassles with IT' (37 per cent) and 'security concerns' (32 per cent).