Thu. Mar 28th, 2024

Content Assessment: Feeding the Frenzy? Summer 2022 eDiscovery Pricing Survey Results

Information - 96%
Insight - 95%
Relevance - 97%
Objectivity - 98%
Authority - 94%

96%

Excellent

A short percentage-based assessment of the qualitative benefit of the semi-annual eDiscovery pricing survey, summer 2022 results, as conducted and published by ComplexDiscovery.

Editor’s Note: This is not a perfect survey. Nor is it an all-inclusive survey. However, it does attempt to characterize baseline pricing expectations for twelve specific eDiscovery-centric offerings from the perspective of cybersecurity, information governance, and legal discovery professionals operating in the eDiscovery ecosystem. The survey was developed through the aggregation and distillation of a combination of research, reports, and discussions with industry professionals ranging from private equity investors and service providers to legal technology analysts and consumers. While there are many pricing approaches for the offerings within the survey, approaches that span the spectrum from volume, hour, and license models to alternative pricing models including flat fee, managed service, and subscription approaches, the survey seeks to provide insight into the basic building blocks that are comprehended in many of these pricing methods for the purpose of understanding and comparing pricing against pricing and pricing against value.


The Summer 2022 eDiscovery Pricing* Survey

Industry Survey

Initiated in the winter of 2019 and conducted eight times with 641 individual responses, the semi-annual eDiscovery Pricing Survey provides a mechanism for cyber, data, and legal discovery specialists to share and consider current pricing for selected eDiscovery-centric collection, processing, and review tasks. Today ComplexDiscovery shares the results of the Summer 2022 eDiscovery Pricing Survey.

Survey Overview

The eDiscovery Pricing Survey is designed to provide insight into industry pricing through the lens of 12 pricing questions answered by legal, business, and information technology professionals operating in the eDiscovery ecosystem. The non-scientific and non-comprehensive survey questions are focused on general pricing for a specific selection of collection, processing, and review tasks. The survey is not designed to be all-inclusive but designed to provide a general overview of the pricing landscape for study, consideration, and use by individuals and organizations with both a direct and indirect interest in the economics of eDiscovery. Summer 2022 survey question areas included:

Collection

  • Per Hour Cost for Collection by a Forensic Examiner
  • Per Device Cost for Collection by a Forensic Examiner
  • Per Hour Cost for Analysis, Affidavit, and Expert Witness Support by a Forensic Examiner

Processing

  • Per GB Cost to Process ESI (At Ingestion)
  • Per GB Cost to Process ESI (At Export)
  • Per GB Per Month Cost to Host ESI Without Analytics
  • Per GB Per Month Cost to Host ESI With Analytics
  • Per Month Cost Per User License for Access to Hosted Data
  • Per Hour Cost for Project Management Support

Review

  • Per GB Cost for Predictive Coding
  • Per Hour Cost for Document Review Attorney Review
  • Per Document Cost for Document Review Attorney Review

Additionally, general information background questions included:

  • Geographical Region: In which geographical region do you primarily conduct eDiscovery-related business?
  • Business Segment: Which business segment best describes your business in eDiscovery?
  • Primary Function: What area best describes your primary function in the conduct of your organization’s eDiscovery-related business?

Survey Results

The summer 2022 survey response period was initiated on May 8, 2022, and closed on May 17, 2022. This was the eighth semi-annual eDiscovery pricing survey conducted by ComplexDiscovery. This summer’s survey was highlighted directly to cybersecurity, information governance, and legal discovery professionals via email and indirectly via social media and website announcements. The survey had 60 respondents.

While individual respondent answers to the pricing survey are confidential, the anonymized aggregate results for the 12 pricing questions of the multiple-choice survey as well as the general information question results are published without commentary.


eDiscovery Pricing Survey Responses 

n=60 Respondents ↓

Collection Pricing

1. What is the per hour cost for a collection by a forensic examiner?

  • Less than $250 per hour. 13.3% ↑
  • Between $250 and $350 per hour. 66.7% ↑
  • Greater than $350 per hour. 5.0% ↑
  • Do not know. 10.0% ↓
  • Alternative pricing model for per hour costs. 5.0% ↑
1 - Collection Pricing - Per Hour Cost for a Collection by a Forensic Examiner - Summer 2022

2. What is the per device cost for a collection by a forensic examiner?

  • Less than $250 per device. 6.7% ↓
  • Between $250 and $350 per device. 28.3% ↑
  • Greater than  $350 per device. 41.7% ↑
  • Do not know. 16.7% ↓
  • Alternative pricing model for per device costs. 6.7% ↑
2 - Collection Pricing - Per Device Cost for a Collection by a Forensic Examiner - Summer 2022

3. What is the per hour cost for analysis and expert witness support by a forensic examiner?

  • Less than $350 per hour. 11.7% ↓
  • Between $350 and $550 per hour. 66.7% ↑
  • Greater than $550 per hour. 5.0% ↓
  • Do not know. 15.0% ↓
  • Alternative pricing model for per hour costs. 1.7% ↓
3 - Collection Pricing - Per Hour Cost for Analysis and Expert Witness Support from a Forensic Examiner - Summer 2022

 Processing Pricing

4. What is the per GB cost to process electronically stored information based on volume at ingestion?

  • Less than $25 per GB. 26.7% ↓
  • Between $25 and $75 per GB. 35.0% ↑
  • Greater than $75 per GB. 11.7% ↑
  • Do not know. 8.3% ↑
  • Alternative pricing model for per GB costs. 18.3% ↑
4 - Processing Pricing - Per GB Cost to Process ESI Based on Volume at Ingestion - Summer 2022

5. What is the per GB cost to process electronically stored information based on volume at completion of processing?

  • Less than $100 per GB. 38.3% ↑
  • Between $100 and $150 per GB. 20.0% ↓
  • Greater than $150 per GB. 3.3% ↓
  • Do not know. 11.7% ↑
  • Alternative pricing model for per GB costs. 26.7% ↑
5 - Processing Pricing - Per GB Cost to Process ESI Based on Volume at Completion of Processing - Summer 2022

6. What is the per GB per month cost to host electronically stored information without analytics?

  • Less than $10 per GB per month. 40.0% ↑
  • Between $10 and $20 per GB per month. 38.3% ↓
  • Greater than $20 per GB per month. 8.3% ↑
  • Do not know. 5.0% ↓
  • Alternative pricing model for per GB costs. 8.3% ↓
6 - Processing Pricing - Per GB Cost Per Month to Host ESI without Analytics - Summer 2022

7. What is the per GB per month cost to host electronically stored information with analytics?

  • Less than $15 per GB per month. 50.0% ↑
  • Between $15 and $25 per GB per month. 25.0% ↓
  • Greater than $25 per GB per month. 5.0% ↓
  • Do not know. 10.0% ↑
  • Alternative pricing model for per GB costs. 10.0% ↓
7 - Processing Pricing - Per GB Cost Per Month to Host ESI with Analytics - Summer 2022

8. What is the user license fee per month for access to hosted data?

  • Less than $50 per user per month. 5.0% ↓
  • Between $50 and $100 per user per month. 56.7% ↑
  • Greater than $100 per user per month. 10.0% ↑
  • Do not know. 5.0% ↓
  • Alternative pricing model for user license costs. 23.3% ↑
8 - Processing Pricing - User License Fee Per Month for Access to Hosted Data - Summer 2022

9. What is the per hour cost of project management support for eDiscovery?

  • Less than $100 per hour. 0.0% =
  • Between $100 and $200 per hour. 60.0% ↓
  • Greater than $200 per hour. 30.0% ↑
  • Do not know. 3.3% ↓
  • Alternative pricing model for per hour costs. 6.7% ↑
9 - Processing Pricing - Per Hour Cost of Project Management Support for eDiscovery - Summer 2022

Review Pricing

10.  What is the per GB cost to conduct predictive coding as part of a technology-assisted review during the document review phase of eDiscovery?

  • Less than $75 per GB. 25.0% ↓
  • Between $75 and $150 per GB. 6.7% ↓
  • Greater than $150 per GB. 1.7% ↓
  • Do not know. 23.3% ↑
  • Alternative pricing model for per GB costs. 43.3% ↑
10 - Review Pricing - Per GB Cost to Conduct Predictive Coding in a Technology-Assisted Review - Summer 2022

11. What is the cost per hour for document review attorneys to review documents during the review phase of eDiscovery?

  • Less than $25 per hour. 0.0% ↓
  • Between $25 and $40 per hour. 31.7% ↑
  • Greater than $40 per hour. 53.3% ↑
  • Do not know. 10.0% ↓
  • Alternative pricing model for per hour costs. 5.0% ↓
11 - Review Pricing - Per Hour Cost for Document Review Attorneys to Review Documents - Summer 2022

12. What is the cost per document for document review attorneys to review documents during the review phase of eDiscovery?

  • Less than $0.50 per document. 3.3% ↓
  • Between $0.50 and $1.00 per document. 41.7% ↑
  • Greater than $1.00 per document. 18.3% ↓
  • Do not know. 21.7% ↓
  • Alternative pricing model for per document costs. 15.0% ↑
12 - Review Pricing - Per Document Cost for Document Review Attorneys to Review Documents - Summer 2022

Background Information

13. In which geographical region do you primarily conduct eDiscovery-related business?

  • North America – United States. 86.7% ↓
  • North America – Canada. 5.0% ↑
  • Asia/Asia Pacific. 5.0% ↑
  • Europe – United Kingdom. 1.7% ↓
  • Middle East/Africa. 1.7% ↑
  • Europe – Non-UK. 0.0% ↓
  • Central/South America. 0.0% =
13 - Survey Respondents by Geographic Region - Summer 2022

14. Which of the following segments best describes your business in eDiscovery?

  • Law Firm. 41.7% ↓
  • Software and/or Services Provider. 38.3% ↓
  • Consultancy. 10.0% ↑
  • Media/Research Organization/Educational Association. 8.3% ↑
  • Corporation. 1.7% ↓
  • Government Entity. 0.0% =
14 - Survey Respondents by Organizational Segment - Summer 2022

15. What area best describes your primary function in the conduct of your organization’s eDiscovery business?

  • Legal/Litigation Support. 76.7% ↑
  • Business/Business Support (All Other Business Functions). 23.3% ↑
  • IT/Product Development. 0.0% ↓
15 - Survey Respondents by Primary Function - Summer 2022

Background: eDiscovery Pricing Survey Respondents by Survey

16 - Survey Respondents (Individual and Aggregate Overview) - Summer 2022

Trend Notes

  • ↑ An increase from the previous survey.
  • ↓ A decrease from the previous survey.
  • = No change from the previous survey.

*For the purpose of this ongoing industry survey, price and cost are used interchangeably and represent the amount a customer is willing to pay for the service. However, from a financial and accounting perspective, pricing is the amount a customer is willing to pay and the cost is typically the expense incurred for creating and delivering the service.

Additional Reading

Source: ComplexDiscovery

 

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