Old computers -the loss in GDP would be 12,000,000 million yen if to leave it just as it was

Recently the NHK News On-line reported the following:

古いコンピューター そのままだとＧＤＰ12兆円の損失

2018年9月6日 22時43分

企業が古いコンピューターシステムを刷新しないと生産性が低下するなどして、７年後には日本のＧＤＰ＝国内総生産が最大で年間12兆円失われるとした試算がまとまりました。経済産業省は企業に対しシステムを刷新するよう求める方針です。

経済産業省によりますと、コンピューターシステムを定期的に刷新する作業は多額の費用がかかるうえシステム障害も懸念されることなどから、大企業でも十分対応できていないケースが多いということです。

この影響について経済産業省は有識者を集めた会議で検討し、このほど報告書を取りまとめました。

それによりますと、システムを長い間、刷新しないと、基盤ソフトのサポートが終了したり古いシステムに精通した人材が減ったりして、トラブルが起こりやすくなること。

そして、最新の技術を活用しないことで生産性が低下するなどの悪影響があり、７年後の2025年には日本のＧＤＰが最大で年間12兆円失われると試算しています。

このため経済産業省は、今年度中に企業向けのガイドラインを策定してシステムの刷新を行うよう求めるほか、国の機関がシステムを点検する仕組みを設ける方向で調整することにしています。

 Translation

An estimated calculation compiled had supposed that if enterprises didn't update their old computer systems, their productivity would fall; Japanese GDP= gross domestic product 7 years later would lost 12,000,000 million yen each year at the maximum; the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry had a policy to ask enterprises to update their system.

According to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, due to the large amount of cost needed to update computer systems periodically, and also there was a fear of system failures etc., it was said that there were a lot of cases that even large enterprises could not handle the situation.

 Regarding the impact, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry gathered together knowledgeable people to a meeting and compiled a report recently.

According to that, when a system failed to be updated for a long time, the basic software system foundation support would come to an end, and the talent who were familiar with the old systems would became less and troubles would be easy to happen.

If not utilizing the latest technology, the productivity would fall and there would be bad influence; a testing calculation indicated that 7 years later in 2025, a maximum of 12,000,000 million yen a year in Japanese GDP would be lost.

Therefore the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, in this fiscal year, had set a policy on guideline to ask corporations to carry out system updating. Furthermore, regarding the other national organizations, to make adjustments towards the direction in which mechanisms designed to set up checking systems would be installed.

          It seems that the Japanese corporations are moving towards the next level of computerization.