Insurance deal activity was steady through the end of 2008 across virtually every sector.

In this report, Insurance Software Deal Trends 2009, Celent analyzes deal data provided by software vendors active in insurance. A close look at 2007 and 2008 deals that fall in each metacategory and subcategory shows that insurers are still investing in solutions, despite the market turmoil.

The report breaks down deal activity by carrier size, type of deal, four broad metcategories (core processing, distribution, infrastructure and financial, and document/content management), and a number of subcategories. Data from previous Deal Trends reports are used to look at longer term trends (see figure below), and leading vendors for each metacategory are identified.

Based on vendor-provided data, the report also names leaders in the Celent Traction Index, which is an indicator of which companies are finding success in the insurance vertical.

"I can’t say that I’m surprised at the steady deal volume," says Craig Weber, senior vice president of Celent’s insurance practice and author of the report. "We’ve been hearing from clients and other industry contacts that the race for improved efficiency and better service delivery is still on, despite the broader economic issues, but it’s nice to have some data to confirm that theory."