A recent study published by Pyramid Research revealed many companies are embracing a net-centric architecture to contain IT costs and limit spending on system maintenance.

According Pyramid's survey, a "significant amount" of respondents were willing to spend a large chunk of their IT budget - generally between 10 and 20 percent - on a net-centric architecture. And nearly 60 percent have already deployed a managed service, having done so for one to four years, according to the report.

"Managed services free up valuable information technology resources, decrease staffing needs and enable enterprises to invest in activities that differentiate them from the competition," Pyramid stated in its report.

The European market has shown the greatest uptake of managed services, as companies conduct business across numerous borders. But the recession in North America has also forced companies to incorporate a net-centric architecture.

The U.S. Army announced earlier this month that is looking to secure a contract to support its net-centric architecture. The Army is researching firms in hopes of signing a three-year contract for support services for command and control systems.