Twenty-five percent of customer service and support operations will integrate virtual customer assistant (VCA) or chatbot technology across engagement channels by 2020, up from less than two percent in 2017, according to Gartner, Inc. (www.gartner.com).

Speaking at the Gartner Customer Experience Summit in Tokyo earlier this week, Gene Alvarez, managing vice president at the research group, said more than half of organizations have already invested in VCAs for customer service, as they realize the advantages of automated self-service, together with the ability to escalate to a human agent in complex situations.

"As more customers engage on digital channels, VCAs are being implemented for handling customer requests on websites, mobile apps, consumer messaging apps and social networks," he said. "This is underpinned by improvements in natural-language processing, machine learning and intent-matching...

A new study from Juniper Research (www.juniperresearch.com) has found that the value of consumer spend on remote payments for digital and physical goods will surpass $3.3 trillion this year, up 10% on 2017’s total of $3 trillion.

The research group says alternative payment mechanisms would comprise an ever increasing proportion of online spend. PayPal already accounts for 20% of mobile and online physical goods transactions made outside China, while the success of Alipay and Weixin Pay within China means that these two players combined now account for 45% of global payment volumes.

The research also highlighted the major pain points for merchants and consumers. Juniper says European merchants needed to be aware of the implications of PSD2 on card-on-file, meaning they would need to be ‘white-listed’ by consumers for payment details to be stored. Indeed, CA (Secure Customer Authentication)...

Meaningful artificial intelligence (AI) deployments are just beginning to take place, according to Gartner, Inc. (www.gartner.com). The research group’s 2018 CIO Agenda Survey shows that 4% of CIOs have implemented AI, while a further 46% have developed plans to do so.

"Despite huge levels of interest in AI technologies, current implementations remain at quite low levels," said Whit Andrews, research vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. "However, there is potential for strong growth as CIOs begin piloting AI programs through a combination of buy, build and outsource efforts."

As with most emerging or unfamiliar technologies, early adopters are facing many obstacles to the progress of AI in their organizations. For instance, Gartner predicts that by 2020, 20% of organizations will dedicate workers to monitoring and guiding neural networks.

New data from Juniper Research (www.juniperresearch.com) has found that a combination of increased uptake in digital products, coupled with new, positive regulation, will drive a surge in online gambling wagers.

The research group adds that they will reach a total of $1 trillion globally in 2022, more than the annual deficit being added to US national debt; total online wagers are expected to reach $700 billion this year, up from just over $620 billion in 2017.

Juniper says the online casino industry will drive a surge in wagers placed digitally, with this segment comprising over 40% of online wagers by 2022. This growth in the casino market will be aided by new technologies.

“We believe new channels, such as chatbots, have the potential to drive customer engagement, through delivery of personalized offers, alongside 24/7 player support,” says research author Lauren Foye.

The...

Sixty-three percent of U.S. adults who use a smartphone have at least one financial app, according to a new Bankrate.com report. The average smartphone user has 2.5 financial apps. Among millennials (18-37 year-olds), the average is 3.6. It drops to 2.3 for Gen X (ages 38-53) and 1.4 for Baby Boomers (ages 54-72).

The most common financial apps are full-service banking apps; 55% of U.S. adults who have a smartphone have at least one full-service banking app, including 23% who have at least two.

Peer-to-peer payments apps (such as Venmo, PayPal and Square Cash) are the second most common. 41% of smartphone users have at least one of these and 15% have more than one.

Standalone budgeting and investing apps are less common; they can be found on just 18% and 17% of smartphones, respectively. Mint, Clarity Money and Wally are among the best-known budgeting apps. Stash, Acorns and Betterment are popular for investing.

People with banking apps are the most...

A new research report from Juniper Research (www.juniperresearch.com) forecasts that specialized fitness wearables integrated into clothing and ear-based “hearables” will grow from an expected 4.5 million shipped in 2018 to nearly 30 million in 2022, an increase of more than 550%. By contrast, conventional activity tracker shipments will only grow by 20% in that time, according to the research group.

The new research found that as growth in basic trackers has slowed, session specific wearables, for example those monitoring gym or training sessions, have multiplied. Devices from companies like Under Armour, Sensoria, Gymwatch, Atlas and Jabra provide more granular metrics, without the additional messaging and call-handling functions of more general wearables.

Juniper says that the key battleground for fitness wearables is now data, which will ultimately become device-agnostic, thanks to...

The worldwide cloud infrastructure services market grew 46% year on year in the fourth quarter (Q4) 2017 to reach $16 billion. This brought 2017’s full-year growth to 45%, according to Canalys (www.canalys.com).

Amazon Web Services (AWS) remained the leading vendor for the quarter, accounting for 32% of the total worldwide market, notes the research group. Microsoft, Google and IBM also held their positions among the largest global cloud service providers, representing 14%, 8% and 4% of the market respectively.

The top four’s dominance grew, driven by their robust performances during the quarter. Microsoft (up 98%) grew the most, while Google (up 85%), AWS (up 45%) and IBM (up 9%) maintained momentum. Canalys expects the cloud market to keep growing in 2018, but there will be challenges ahead.

“2018 will be a disruptive year for the cloud infrastructure services market, which will affect the leading...

The worldwide cloud infrastructure services market grew 46% year on year in the fourth quarter (Q4) 2017 to reach $16 billion.

According to Canalys (www.canalys.com), this brought 2017’s full-year growth to 45%. Amazon Web Services (AWS) remained the leading vendor for the quarter, accounting for 32% of the total worldwide market. Microsoft, Google and IBM also held their positions among the largest global cloud service providers, representing 14%, 8% and 4% of the market respectively.

The top four’s dominance grew, driven by their robust performances during the quarter. Microsoft (up 98%) grew the most, while Google (up 85%), AWS (up 45%) and IBM (up 9%) maintained momentum. Canalys expects the cloud market to keep growing in 2018, but there will be challenges ahead.

“2018 will be a disruptive year for the cloud infrastructure services market, which will affect the leading vendors’ costs,” said...

Asigra (www.asigra.com), a cloud backup, recovery and restore software provider, has announced that new forecasts from a trio of market research firms -- Stratistics MRC, CMI, and MarketResearch -- predict continued category adoption and growth in the cloud backup space.
 
Stratistics MRC recently reported that the global cloud backup market could balloon as high as $5.5 billion by 2023 with a CAGR [compound annual growth rate] of 24.2 percent, up from $1.2 billion in 2016. The primary drivers of growth for this category included large amounts of generated data, increasing adoption of SaaS, lower costs, and increased capabilities/efficiencies.
 
A separate report from CMI suggests that the global cloud backup market is on track to have reached $1.3 billion by the end of 2017—with a projected CAGR of over 22 percent between 2017 and 2025—to potentially surpass US$ 6.4 billion by 2025. CMI reported...

A new study from Juniper Research (www.juniperresearch.com) has found that global retailer spending on AI (artificial intelligence) will reach $7.3 billion per annum by 2022, up from an estimated $2 billion in 2018, as retailers target new avenues to increase personalization of the customer experience.

The research group found that retailers will heavily invest in AI tools that allow them to differentiate and improve the services they offer customers. These range from automated marketing platforms that generate tailored, timely offers, to chatbots that provide instant customer service.  

Juniper’s latest research found that spending will be strongest in customer service and sentiment analytics, where AI can be applied to understand customer reaction to the products purchased and the service received. This will prove to be a key tool for retailers seeking to improve their customer experience...

Android devices have recently been under fire for the lack of security provided to their users. For example, it was revealed that the Lebanese Security Agency has been implanting fake apps into Android users’ phones. That allowed the agency to follow people in many countries – journalists, activists, military members and others.
 
In addition, it was found that three quarters of all Android devices were running on security patches at least two months old, posing risks to the users.
 
Users can take certain steps to take Android device security into their own hands. Here are four tips from NordVPN (www.nordvpn.com) on how to keep your Android phone safe:
 
1. Make sure not to download fake apps – do not click on phishing messages. Some original apps from Google Play may have trackers that sell users’ data to advertisers. However, even more dangerous are fake apps – like those that are...

More than half of business teams of all sizes are seeing productivity gains of over 40%, according to the findings of a new report from FileMaker, Inc. (www.filemaker.com). The company's third annual State of the Custom App Report, released today, examines how businesses are harnessing digital transformation and reducing inefficiencies with custom apps.

The global report sheds light on the ways custom apps are driving better, stronger end-results while improving the process of work. The report found that custom apps are being used in a wide variety of ways to help teams accomplish their business goals by streamlining workloads.

These tools don't require prior coding experience and provide users with the flexibility and customizability that pre-packaged software typically lacks. Other

° Custom apps are quick to build – 72%of businesses had their apps up and running in under six months.

° ...

By 2027, “tens of billions” of smart objects will be Internet-enabled with IP addresses, according to a new report from Research and Markets (www.researchandmarkets.com).

Expenditures on buying and installing actual Internet of Things (IoT_ networks is much more modest, contrary to heroic forecasts made by most analysts and manufacturers in the past, adds the research group. Node forecasts have now been reduced in the light of what has happened, though systems figures have been increased.

Research and Markets says it adds up to $20 billion in actual networks, including nodes in 10 years from now and rapid progress after that. See the number and dollar breakdown by application.

Allied Market Research (www.alliedmarketresearch.com) has published a report on the global cyber security market for the forecast period of 2016 - 2022. A compound annual growth of 15.5% is registered in the forecast period, notes the research group. The market will accrue a whopping $198 billion by 2022.

Government and agencies have a long way to go before settling at a cyber security technology that can protect them from growing cyber threats, according to Allied Market Research. It would not come as a surprise if the world faces another wave of cyber violence, adds the research group.

This is due to the lack of budget, fewer facilities for R&D, and scarcity of workforce that is keeping us behind. Healthcare centers have sensitive patient information, military and aerospace sectors cannot afford to compromise their data to unknown eyes, and the government holds dear various...

In its current form, the Internet of Things (IoT) represents a considerable threat to consumers due to inadequate regulations regarding security and privacy, say experts interviewed by the Cyber Security Research Institute for a new report sponsored by F-Secure (www.f-secure.com). Swift action is recommended to” avoid a predictable descent into a dystopian future,” according to the study.

With the number of connected devices now likely exceeding the human population of Earth, the IoT is already nearly inescapable. Millions of connected devices have already been compromised to be used a part of the Mirai botnet. Many consumers aren’t aware of inherent risks of their connected devices and that manufacturers often rush products to market without considering basic security requirements and settings.

“This situation could create an even more frightening scenario than the UK tabloid newspapers' ‘phone hacking’...

Robotic technology is quietly transforming the world of agriculture and will grow to become a $45 billon industry by 2028, according to the IDTechEx (www.IDTechEx.com) research group.

Tractor guidance and autosteer are well-established technologies. In the short to medium terms, both will continue their growth thanks to improvements and cost reductions in RTK GPS technology. IDTechEx estimates that around 700,000 tractors equipped with autosteer or tractor guidance will be sold in 2028.

Unmanned autonomous tractors have also been technologically demonstrated with large-scale market introduction largely delayed — not by technical issues but by regulation, high sensor costs and the lack of farmers' trust. This will start to slowly change from 2024 onwards, though the sales will only slowly grow. IDTechEx estimates that around 40,000 unmanned fully-autonomous (level 5) tractors will be sold in 2038. The take...

Last year was a banner year for cyber crime; more data was stolen in the first six months of 2017 than in the entirety of 2016. Gemalto’s Breach Level Index found that over 900 data breaches occurred during the first half of 2017, compromising 1.9 billion records.

According to Jing Xie, senior threat intelligence analyst for Venafi (www.venafi.com), a cyber security company, this explosive development in data exfiltration will continue in 2018. In an even more ominous trend, the number of sophisticated state sponsored cyber attacks increased significantly last year.

“In 2017, attackers working for nation-states focused on efficiency and return on investment, and they were very successful,” said Xie. “As a result, we should expect to see escalations and variations of similar attack vectors this year.”
Xie examined the condition of nation-state sponsored cyber warfare and offered these predictions and...

Worldwide spending on public cloud services and infrastructure is forecast to reach $160 billion in 2018, an increase of 23.2% over 2017, according to IDC.

Although annual spending growth is expected to slow somewhat over the 2016-2021 forecast period, the market is forecast to achieve a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21.9% with public cloud services spending totaling $277 billion in 2021, adds the research group.

The industries that are forecast to spend the most on public cloud services in 2018 are discrete manufacturing ($19.7 billion), professional services ($18.1 billion), and banking ($16.7 billion). The process manufacturing and retail industries are also expected to spend more than $10 billion each on public cloud services in 2018. These five industries will remain at the top in 2021 due to their continued investment in public cloud solutions. The industries that will see the fastest spending growth over the five-year forecast period are...

The technology divide between older and younger generations may not be as wide as you think. According to a recent survey of 1,000 seniors issued by Senior Helpers (www.seniorhelpers.com), aprovider of in-home senior care, more than 68 percent of people ages 65+ rate their technology skills either average or above average.

The survey, which examined seniors' attitudes on everything from apps and internet usage to social media habits, also found that while most would not consider themselves "tech-savvy" (71 percent), nearly 60 percent of seniors think younger generations underestimate their knowledge and aptitude for technology.

"Technology is constantly evolving, but seniors are much more adept at using tech than many people give them credit for," said Peter Ross, CEO and co-founder, Senior Helpers. "It's become integral to so many other aspects of their lives, they are embracing it.”

The...

Worldwide IT spending is projected to total $3.7 trillion in 2018, an increase of 4.5% from 2017, according to the latest forecast by Gartner, Inc. (www.gartner.com).

"Global IT spending growth began to turn around in 2017, with continued growth expected over the next few years. However, uncertainty looms as organizations consider the potential impacts of Brexit, currency fluctuations, and a possible global recession," said John-David Lovelock, research vice president at Gartner. "Despite this uncertainty, businesses will continue to invest in IT as they anticipate revenue growth, but their spending patterns will shift. Projects in digital business, blockchain, Internet of Things (IoT), and progression from big data to algorithms to machine learning to artificial intelligence (AI) will continue to be main drivers of growth.”

Enterprise software continues to exhibit strong growth, with worldwide software...

Worldwide semiconductor revenue is forecast to total $451 billion in 2018, an increase of 7.5% from $419 billion in 2017, according to Gartner, Inc. (www.gartner.com). This represents a near doubling of the research group’s previous estimate of 4%growth for 2018.

"Favorable market conditions for memory sectors that gained momentum in the second half of 2016 prevailed through 2017 and look set to continue in 2018, providing a significant boost to semiconductor revenue," said Ben Lee, principal research analyst at Gartner. "Gartner has increased the outlook for 2018 by $23.6 billion compared with the previous forecast, of which the memory market accounts for $19.5 billion. Price increases for both DRAM and NAND flash memory are raising the outlook for the overall semiconductor market.”

However, these price increases will put pressure on margins for system vendors of key semiconductor demand drivers, including...

As new estimates predict cybercrime costs will exceed $2 trillion by 2019, many consumers are wary of letting companies handle their personal data, according to Spohn Security Solutions offers advice on how to handle and defend against such problems.

Lack of diligence in the business world has dominated headlines, leading to serious mistrust on the part of consumers. Currently, 68% of consumers don’t trust companies to handle their personal data securely and keep it protected from hackers, according to Spohn.

Companies need consumer data for invoicing and other legitimate business purposes. This means that methods must be developed for effectively securing data to prevent personal information from falling into the wrong hands. Cybercriminals quickly devise strategies to overcome older security measures, and it’s a sure bet that they’ll continue to exploit any possible vulnerabilities in new security patches, etc.

However, there are some basic practices one...

A new study from Juniper Research (www.juniperresearch.com) has found that the global number of registered mobile domestic money transfer users is expected to reach 2.5 billion this year, up from an estimated 1.7 billion in 2016.

This will be driven by social media apps such as WeChat, Facebook and others already witnessing a dramatic rise in service usage, alongside new services including Apple Pay Cash, and Zelle Pay; with leading mobile money services driving growth in emerging markets, adds the research group.

Juniper believes that 2018 will be the year for social payments with key rollouts from Apple, Google and Facebook expected to drive the much delayed social payments market, as a subsector of the wider mobile P2P market.

“It was inevitable that players such as Apple would follow in the footsteps of WeChat Pay and AliPay, and offer a universal set of payment features...

Technology has made the process of home buying and selling simpler, smarter and faster. As smart home and virtual reality (VR) technology continues to become more mainstream and sought after, consumers are now expecting high-tech experiences before even stepping foot in a prospective listing.

A new survey from Coldwell Banker Real Estate (www.coldwellbanker.com), conducted online by Harris Poll among over 3,000 U.S. adults, suggests VR is poised to become the next big thing in real estate. Americans appear to be ready to embrace VR as a resource to visualize what is normally left to the home buyer's imagination.

In fact, the desire for VR house tours is almost on par with traditional video tours. For those considering a home purchase in the future, 84% of respondents would like to see video footage, while 77% would like the ability to be able to take VR house tours before actually visiting...