Research firm IDC has released an Internet of Things (IoT) forecast for 2014-2017, revealing major growth opportunities for the consumer, discrete manufacturing and government vertical sectors.
The report suggests that technology and services revenue for IoT will go from $4.8 trillion (£2.9 trillion, AU$5.3 trillion) in 2012 to a staggering $7.3 trillion (£4.4 trillion, AU$8.2 trillion) in 2017, with a compound annual growth rate of 8.8 per cent.
IDC found that while the IoT market is growing quickly, there will not be consistent growth across all vertical markets. The automotive, transportation and utilities sectors will see the most immediate growth, thanks to their existing understanding of IoT.
Vertical opportunities on the horizon
IDC said that the greatest IT opportunities for IoT are driven from a vertical market perspective. These include the connected home, smart meters, connected cars, smart grids, and connected health.
"The Internet of Things market must be understood in terms of vertical markets because the value of IoT is based on individual use cases across all markets," said Scott Tiazkun, senior research analyst at IDC.
"Successful sales and marketing efforts by vendors will be based on understanding the most lucrative verticals that offer current growth and future potential and then creating solutions for specific use cases that address industry-specific business processes."
The report shows that IoT opens up the consumer market for many IT vendors, and while there are opportunities in the horizontal market, companies that focus more on long-term niche needs will likely see the biggest return.
