Next evolution in IoT will be ‘sentient’ tools, cognition and predictive computing
Created May 8, 2017
News and BusinessCommercialisation of narrowband IoT technology is widening growth opportunities, finds Frost & Sullivan’s Digital Transformation team.
Growth in the Internet of Things (IoT) market, as evidenced by increasing launches, investments and partnerships, will accelerate in 2017 with the commercialisation of narrowband IoT (NB-IoT). This cellular communications technology uses licensed spectrum and offers a standardised low-power, wide-area network (LPWAN) that can capture previously untapped segments of the market.
Further, machine learning and blockchain technologies are being integrated with different industries, such as financial services and energy. In Europe, IoT connections are set to exceed nine billion by 2021. Dedicated venture funds for IoT development will help create an ecosystem that is conducive to the growth of startups in the region.
“IoT applications integrate the consumer into the wider connected system to reflect a truly intelligent society,” said Digital Transformation Research Analyst Yiru Zhong. “Significant funding in the past 18 months suggests that the IoT market is poised for another shift.
“The next evolution will be from using data to react to events, to using sentient tools and cognition or ‘predictive computing. IoT 2.0 will thus eventually enable self-healing events in a connected system.”
European Internet of Things Market Outlook, 2017, new research from Frost & Sullivan’s Connected Industries Growth Partnership Service, summarises the IoT landscape in 2016 in terms of adoption, applications and key market players, and forecasts development areas. The study examines enterprise attitudes to IoT adoption and offers eight market predictions for IoT in 2017 and beyond.
Five emerging growth areas for IoT
• Platform Play – Market launches of new or revamped platform plays for connectivity, service, and application enablement are continuing
• LPWAN – With NB-IoT, companies offering connected service in any form will now have more concrete low-power connectivity options to test and deploy suitable new applications from 2017 onwards.
• Industry Vendor Convergence – Tier-2 industrial vendor merger and acquisition activities will persist, while established conglomerate giants add digital technologies to their portfolios.
• Cybersecurity in IoT – Focus will be on enabling multi-layered security approaches, while addressing individual behaviour risks to IoT systems.
• Consumer IoT – More proof of concepts and provision of discounts or subsidies will encourage consumers to discover, experiment and experience connected IoT applications.
“Q3 2016 witnessed a surge of large industry participants coming together to establish partnerships for promotion of the IoT ecosystem,” noted Zhong. “Consumer IoT adoption requires tangible demonstration of product and benefits, and Avanci, Chronicled and Zurich Insurance stood out with new propositions essential to IoT development; Vodafone and Cocoon led the way in proofs of concept and insurance tie-ups, respectively.”
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