2014
What to Expect from Mobile Tech and M2M in 2014
Mobile technology has seen explosive growth during the last few years and this trend is likely to continue into 2014 as well. As 2013 winds down, below are some trends to expect in the New Year with some insight from Jasper Wireless.
Internet of Things (IoT)
The IoT is likely to become one of the biggest trends in 2014 across all industries. As more and more devices become connected, a lot of innovation is expected in this field. Already there are many applications that contribute to connected homes, cars, cities and devices, and this is only going to increase. Smartphones and tablets are only part of the equation – the IoT also expands to the growth of wearable technology, which most integrate with mobile devices via apps.
Cloud Services
The amount of money that business will spend on cloud services is expected to increase by 25 percent and touch the $100-billion mark in 2014. This includes all cloud related services such as software, services, storage and cloud computing. This growth in cloud services, in turn, will lead to the growth of workload specialized cloud infrastructure services. Also, the data centers that play an integral part in cloud computing is expected to increase dramatically to meet this increasing demand.
Social Media
Social will play a central role in customer engagement and interaction in 2014. Especially important is that more than 71 percent of people are using mobile to access social media, according to the Adobe 2013 Mobile Consumer Survey. Social will become an essential component in all cloud applications and will become the de-facto standard for the business world in the coming years. In fact, IDC predicts that by 2017, 80 percent of Fortune 500 companies will have an active social community and 2014 will be the year that will propel this change. In 2014, organizations have to make sure every campaign is mobile-friendly.
Connected Cars
A lot of innovation is taking place in the automotive industry, especially in terms of connectivity. A study by Machina Research shows that by 2020 almost 90 percent of cars will have some form of connectivity. The cars that come out in 2014 are expected to have LTE to make them 4G-compatible, though 4G as a technology is still expensive. This is because manufacturers are looking to future-proof cars so that consumers can use 4G technology when it becomes more affordable in the future, according to Macario Namie, VP of marketing at Jasper Wireless.
These trends are likely to lay the foundation for a more connected digital society in the future as companies, consumers and devices prepare for the Internet of Things.