Gartner’s Disclaimer

Gartner recently provided my company with one day of free access to evaluate its online research. Our conclusion, regardless of the message each report attempted to convey, their disclaimer (at the bottom of each report) negated it.

© 2007 Gartner, Inc. and/or its Affiliates. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction and distribution of this publication in any form without prior written permission is forbidden. The information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. Gartner disclaims all warranties as to the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of such information. Although Gartner’s research may discuss legal issues related to the information technology business, Gartner does not provide legal advice or services and its research should not be construed or used as such. Gartner shall have no liability for errors, omissions or inadequacies in the information contained herein or for interpretations thereof. The opinions expressed herein are subject to change without notice.

Analyzing the disclaimer…

© 2007 Gartner, Inc. and/or its Affiliates

This we understood.

“All Rights Reserved” and “Reproduction and Distribution…”

Standard legal language that everyone who deals with intellectual property understands and appreciates (except for maybe the Chinese).

“The information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. Gartner disclaims all warranties as to the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of such information”

… then later…

“Gartner shall have no liability for errors, omissions or inadequacies in the information contained herein or for interpretations thereof”

This instills a great deal of confidence in what they’re saying doesn’t it? By the way “what they’re saying” costs a lot too.

“Although Gartner’s research may discuss legal issues…”

Gartner’s not a legal firm (but it’s obvious they consulted with one).

“The opinions expressed herein are subject to change without notice”

Check back next week. The report might say the exact opposite (that will cost you a lot as well).

For those of you who don’t know Gartner (formerly know as The Gartner Group), they market themselves to be (and I quote from their website)…

“the world’s leading information technology research and advisory company”

“the indispensable partner to 60,000 clients in 10,000 distinct organizations. Through the resources of Gartner Research, Gartner Consulting and Gartner Events, we work with every client to research, analyze and interpret the business of IT within the context of their individual role”

…and their consultants and researchers…

“Our people are exceptional. As the leading provider of research and analysis to the global IT industry, Gartner is fortunate to attract analysts and consultants who are at the very top of their field”

With that said, 60,000 clients and a valuation of $1.6 billion - if you’re in the business of providing research, especially for a premium, then stand behind it. That’s what companies are paying for - that’s what they expect.

Six months ago, several articles were written about Gartner adding EMC to it Magic Quadrant (a Gartner research methodology). Guess what, there’s a disclaimer for the Magic Quadrant as well.

http://www.businessreviewonline.com/blog/archives/2006/12/market_share_le.html

http://redmonk.com/jgovernor/2006/12/22/on-market-share-leader-in-gartner-magic-quadrant-shocker/