Worldwide sales of business intelligence software grew a hearty 22% in 2008, according to Gartner, proving that many companies see BI as a good investment during tough economic times.

Total revenue for the market came in at $8.8 billion, with six vendors -- SAP/Business Objects, SAS Institute, Oracle, IBM/Cognos, Microsoft, and MicroStrategy -- owning 75% of the market.

SAP/Business Objects led the pack with 24% of the market, or $2.1 billion in sales last year.SAS Institute and Oracle tied for second place, each with 14.6% of the market, followed by IBM/Cognos, with 11.3%. Microsoft came in with 7.7%, and MicroStrategy, 3.2%.

Gartner included sales of BI platforms (or suites), analytic applications, and performance management software in its analysis.

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