Feb 12
Gartner: 30% of organizations will use biometric...
The consumerization of IT and business bring your own device (BYOD) programs have resulted in potential security problems for IT leaders, according to Gartner Inc. (http://www.gartner.com).
User expectations of a clean and simple mobile user experience often outweigh security concerns, and the same valuable data guarded by complex passwords and security measures on personal computers [PCs] can be left vulnerable on mobile devices. Gartner predicts that, by 2016, 30% of organizations will use biometric authentication on mobile devices, up from five percent today.
"Mobile users staunchly resist authentication methods that were tolerable on PCs and are still needed to bolster secure access on mobile devices," says Ant Allan, research vice president at Gartner. "Security leaders must manage users' expectations and take into account the user experience without comprising security."
While most...
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Feb 11
ABI Research: GPS fitness market overshadowed by smart...
Despite major GPS fitness device original equipment manufacturers (OEMS) announcing new fitness products at CES 2014, it looks like an increasingly difficult battle between smart devices and wearables, according to ABI Research.
Garmin launched its Vivofit fitness band and Vivoki/Vivahub corporate wellness solution. Magallen is one of the few companies in the GPS device OEM space that continues to show flashes of innovation, opening up its Echo watch platform to a range of third party smartphone application developers. At the high-end of the GPS fitness watch market, Polar has launched a new multi-sport watch, which features a barometric pressure sensor, support for new features such as a cycling power pedal, and an interesting price point of US$450-500. TomTom has launched an iOS application that links its current GPS watch range to an iPhone via Bluetooth.
In ABI Research’s quarterly GPS/GNSS Device tracker (...
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Feb 10
2013 Smart TV shipments grew 55%
According to the latest research from Strategy Analytics, global Smart TV shipments grew 55% year-over-year to reach 76 million units in 2013, accounting for 33% of total Flat Panel TV (FPTV) during the year.
Strategy Analytics' Smart TV Forecast report (www.strategyanalytics.com) found that Western Europe was the leading market for Smart TV in terms of penetration of shipments with close to 45% of FPTVs shipped in the region last year being Smart TVs. Looking to the future, the company predicts that global Smart TVs will account for 44% of FPTV shipments in 2014 and 73% by 2017 by which time it says virtually all mid to high-end TV sets will include some form of IP connectivity.
"Smart TVs are steadily moving mainstream and are integrating into a multi-platform offering alongside smartphones, tablets and PCs. Manufacturers will do well to focus their efforts on enabling better...
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Feb 07
Gartner: use of 3D printing will ignite debate on...
The technology of 3D "bioprinting" (the medical application of 3D printing to produce living tissue and organs) is advancing so quickly that it will spark a major ethical debate on its use by 2016, according to Gartner Inc. (http://www.gartner.com).
At the same time, 3D printing of non-living medical devices such as prosthetic limbs, combined with a burgeoning population and insufficient levels of healthcare in emerging markets, is likely to cause an explosion in demand for the technology by 2015.
"3D bioprinting facilities with the ability to print human organs and tissue will advance far faster than general understanding and acceptance of the ramifications of this technology," says Pete Basiliere, research director at Gartner.
Already in August 2013, the Hangzhou Dianzi University in China announced it had invented the biomaterial 3D printer Regenovo, which printed a small working kidney...
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Feb 06
Aging data center asset base poses biggest challenge...
The latest research from the Intelligence division of DatacenterDynamics identifies that the U.S. has one of the highest average facility ages in the world and as a result is fighting an ongoing battle to keep its armada of older facilities fit for purpose in today’s fast-changing, technology-driven data center world.
American metropolitan areas with mature data center markets, including New York and the Tri-State, are finding that increasing proportions of budget are being spent on upgrading existing facilities, ensuring they continue to meet business drivers and are keeping up with the dynamic nature of IT requirements. In addition, the research identifies that almost a quarter of all data center footprint in the U.S. is now outsourced. This represents a significant ongoing shift in the marketplace and one which is expected to continue.
These issues will be on the agenda at DatacenterDynamics Converged New York on March 11 where industry experts, thought...
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Feb 05
ADT, McAfee study shows tie between physical, digital...
McAfee (www.mcafee.com) has released the results of a survey that takes a look at the important parallels between personal and online security. When asked, 39% of respondents said they use technological devices to control their home security systems and 34% use smartphones to do so.
Alongside our appetite for such advanced technologies, so grows our need for protection of the digital devices that control them. Data from this survey suggests that our digital and physical lives are now fully intersected, according to McAfee.
Commissioned by The Futures Company, the joint survey of over 1,000 consumers shows that more than 51% of respondents reported having their personal security compromised through both physical and online breaches. When asked to define "personal security," about 77% of survey participants consider it to intertwine both physical and online security, providing further insight that our digital...
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Feb 03
The Northern Spy: the desktop/laptop market is past...
By Rick Sutcliffe
The Spy and wife own and she drives a 1991 Buick Regal that in today's terms is generally regarded as hopelessly obsolete driving technology. It has no informative car computer display, not GPS, no telephone, no heated seats, TV in the back seating area or anti-lock /skid braking system, and the climate control system is primitive and manual.
Even the 2002 Buick Regal he drives has some of that, though it too is regarded as ancient by some people. Yet both continue to do the job for which they were purchased--transporting among home, Church, town, and children/grandchildren--and, contrary to some, the end use is far more important than the means. So, in what practical sense is either mere means of transport obsolete, except from an advertising bumph point of view, where the goal is to persuade us, against a known lack of need, that we want to buy the latest replacement?
Likewise, hundreds of millions resist computer upgrades...
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Jan 31
Smartphone apps driving telematics in taxis, private...
Although an increasing number of taxis are equipped with embedded telematics units, this is being overshadowed by the rapid rise in popularity of smartphone-based taxi apps, which enable passengers to order a taxi via an app, with the driver similarly receiving pick-up requests directly via smartphone.
Most capital cities nowadays boast a number of smartphone-based taxi-apps. Some of the better known ones include Allocab, Hailo Cab, Uber Taxi, Easy Taxi, Kabbee, mytaxi, GetTaxi, Taxi.eu, Didi-Dache, Huaidi-Dache, MiniCabster, Chauffer-Prive.com, and Yongche. However, not all the apps are the same, although the majority operate on a peer-to-peer basis by-passing traditional taxi companies.
"Some such as Hailo work with the independent taxi drivers, but by-pass the taxi companies," says Gareth Owen, principal analyst at ABI Research (http://www.abiresearch.com). "Others such as Uber compete...
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Jan 30
By 2017, mobile users will provide personalized data...
By 2017, mobile apps will be downloaded more than 268 billion times, generating revenue of more than $77 billion and making apps one of the most popular computing tools for users across the globe, according to Gartner, Inc. (http://www.gartner.com). As a result, the research group predicts that mobile users will provide personalized data streams to more than 100 apps and services every day.
"Mobile apps have become the official channel to drive content and services to consumers. From entertainment content to productivity services, from quantified-self to home automation, there is an app for practically anything a connected consumer may want to achieve," says Brian Blau, research director at Gartner. "This connection to consumer services means users are constantly funneling data through mobile apps. As users continue to adopt and interact with apps, it is their data — what they say, what they do, where they...
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Jan 29
Survey: most smartphone users share their location...
Life360, a location and communication app for families, has shared findings from a recent omnibus survey that show a growing acceptance and use of location sharing apps. The survey, conducted by VeraQuest among a group of more of 1,169 teens and adults who own a smartphone, examined habits and feelings about sharing one's location through an app.
More than 60% of smartphone users report that they use at least one location sharing app on their smartphone, and 36% say they use two or more. Forty-one percent of adults say they are more willing to share their location today versus five years ago.
Both teens and adults overwhelmingly cite safety as the primary reason they are willing to share their location through an app. Yet that feeling of safety is tied to sharing one's location with family members more so than friends. 87% of teens and 73% of adults say they feel safer knowing that their family is aware of their location through an app while only 39% of teens and 42%...
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Jan 28
Two-thirds of U.S. broadband households interested in...
New research from Park Associates (http://www.parksassociates.com) reveals that approximately 66% of all U.S. broadband households find a smart home bundled package appealing, which could include a variety of home safety, security, and management offerings. Home management is the most appealing bundle, including safety alerts, remote home monitoring, and remote management of the home's thermostat.
"Consumers, while interested in smart home services, are averse to long-term contracts, but there are other, alternate options for building revenues," says Tom Kerber, director, r, Research, Home Controls & Energy, Parks Associates. "To avoid monthly monitoring fees, consumers are willing to let their service provider adjust their thermostat during peak hours. There is also interest in in-app purchases and advertising, which could be a source of incremental revenue for product manufacturers and...
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Jan 27
ABI Research: SIM card shipments drop 200 million in...
New data from ABI Research (http://www.abiresearch.com) found that 2013 market shipments fell 193 million units to 4.94 billion — a drop of 3.8%.
A number of separate issues combined to affect the market last year, varying from region to region, according to the research group. While some countries were boosted by the ongoing upgrade and addition of 4G LTE and NFC-capable SIM cards, shipment of such high-end SIMs at a global level were below previous expectations for 2013. However, by far the most significant factor was the overall decline in Asia.
Asia and the ramping penetration of mobile telephony has been the primary growth engine for SIMs over the past five years. In 2013 there were several factors that combined to reverse this process overall. At the end of 2012 India became the latest country to require presentation of ID and registration of the purchase of pre-paid SIMs.
This...
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Jan 24
Hardware security for the mobile market to hit billion...
Hardware security for mobile devices is fast becoming a priority market as maturing applications for mobile finance or government-level use increasingly demand security at the core, according to ABI Research (http://www.abiresearch.com).
Trust hardware and secure boot for trusted executions environments are necessary elements for such industries, says the research group. Without this security assurance, applications for mobile commerce, mobile money or wallet will have some difficulty getting off the ground and finding adoption by the big card payment providers.
There are a number of obstacles barring the way to the full dynamic emergence of a hardware security market. Not least of which is the fragmented mobile device landscape, with as many players on the silicon IP side as in OEM [original equipment manufacturing], led by ARM, Trustonic, and Samsung. This particular mobile movement is also...
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Jan 24
Survey reveals high cost of equipment failure
The costs and challenges associated with electronic asset failures are significant. To better understand these issues, Innovolt, a provider of intelligent electronics protection and asset management technology, sponsored a survey of executives from several industries that are particularly dependent upon the reliability, performance, and lifespan of sensitive electronic equipment.
The study, conducted by Gatepoint Research, sheds new light on the challenges that businesses face with an emphasis on the problems caused by power quality fluctuations and the true costs related to equipment issues requiring service calls. A sample of the key findings includes:
° Almost a fifth of respondents report that 25%t of their assets require service each month while 4 out of 10 must service 16 percent or more of their assets each month.
° That adds up. 73% of companies with more than 1,000 electronic assets deployed report that each service call costs at least US$150.
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Jan 23
NPD: 3D gesture-sensing technologies poised for double...
Nearly 330 million smart devices with gesture-sensing will be shipped in 2015, a nearly 70% increase over the 2014 forecast and a doubling of shipments in 2013. According to the new data from NPD DisplaySearch (http://www.displaysearch.com) smart devices are expected to drive gesture-sensing market growth in 2015, as the adoption of 3D depth sensing becomes more accurate and affordable, not only on smartphones and tablets, but also on smart TVs, all-in-one computers, and other large-screen devices.
"While touch screens have been successfully adopted as a key user interface for smartphones, mobile PCs, and other mobile devices, larger smart devices are not touch-screen suitable,” said Calvin Hsieh, research director at NPD DisplaySearch. "Gesture sensing is the next critical user interface trend, designed to improve the usefulness of, and user experience on, smart TVs and other large smart devices...
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Jan 22
Gartner: less than 0.01% of consumer mobile devices...
Consumers are increasingly turning to recommendation engines, friends, social networking or advertising to discover mobile applications rather than sorting through the thousands of mobile apps available. As a consequence, Gartner, Inc. (http://www.gartner.com) predicts that through 2018, less than 0.01 percent of consumer mobile apps will be considered a financial success by their developers.
"The vast number of mobile apps may imply that mobile is a new revenue stream that will bring riches to many," said Ken Dulaney, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. "However, our analysis shows that most mobile applications are not generating profits and that many mobile apps are not designed to generate revenue, but rather are used to build brand recognition and product awareness or are just for fun. Application designers who do not recognize this may find profits elusive."
He described the...
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Jan 21
Mobile Wallet usage to increase to over 40% of...
Research from Parks Associates (http://www.parksassociates.com) finds over 40 million U.S. consumers, or 20% of all smartphone users, used at least one mobile proximity or mobile e-commerce wallet in 2013, and usage will increase to nearly 113 million, or 43% of all smartphone users, by 2017.
"After years in development, the mobile wallet market is making progress towards viability," says Jennifer Kent, senior analyst at Parks Associates. "Mobile wallet apps exist at the intersection of marketing and payment, and because of this unique position, they are valuable and insightful tools for merchants and advertisers."
Previously, market watchers used the success or failure of NFC as a barometer for the potential of the mobile wallet market, but barcode-based apps, not NFC, dominate current in-person use, she added. However, with the rise of barcode, cloud, and Bluetooth-based wallets, the...
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Jan 20
Spending on in-app advertising grows to almost $17...
In-app mobile ad spending will reach US$16.9 billion by 2018, up from $3.5 billion last year, a new report from Juniper Research (http://www.juniperresearch.com) finds.
According to the report, growth will be driven by several key factors including improved targeting capabilities, as well as a trend for more effective interactive rich media ads to be deployed in preference to traditional static display advertising. Juniper Research says that while smartphones currently account for approximately 70% of in app ad spending, the growth in tablet users and usage would propel greater medium-term spend.
The research group says that tablet in-app ad spending would be further fueled by the fact that CPMs (cost per 1,000 impressions) are significantly higher than those for smartphones, particularly for rich media ads, which also have higher CPMs than static display ads. By 2018, the tablet/...
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Jan 17
Parks Associates: Nearly 50% of U.S. broadband...
New research from Parks Associates (http://www.parksassociates.com) finds that subscribers of OTT (over-the-top) services spend more per month renting and buying video downloads than the average household.
This contributes to the success of Amazon's business model of integrating transactional services with its Amazon Prime subscription service, says the research group. Two-thirds of Amazon Prime Instant Video subscribers use Amazon transactional service.
"Amazon Prime subscribers report their expenditure on rented and purchased downloads is increasing," says John Barrett, director, Consumer Analytics, Parks Associates. "Netflix subscribers are more likely to say expenditure in all other categories has decreased-a fact that may reflect Netflix's reliance on a single revenue model. Redbox Instant subscribers, conversely, are more likely to say expenditure is increasing in all categories...
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Jan 16
Gartner: worldwide IT spending to reach $3.8 trillion...
Worldwide IT spending is projected to total US$3.8 trillion in 2014, a 3.1%increase from 2013 spending of $3.7 trillion, according to the latest forecast by Gartner, Inc. (http://www.gartner.com). In 2013, the market experienced flat growth, growing 0.4% year over year, according to the research group.
Spending on devices (including personal computers, ultramobiles, mobile phones and tablets) contracted 1.2% in 2013, but it will grow 4.3% in 2014, Gartner predicts. Company analysts said convergence of the personal computer, ultramobiles (including tablets) and mobile phone segments, as well as erosion of margins, will take place as differentiation will soon be based primarily on price instead of devices' orientation to specific tasks.
Enterprise software spending growth continues to be the strongest throughout the forecast period. The 2014 annual growth rate is expected to grow 6.8%. Customer...
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Jan 15
Forrester: top five global eCommerce predictions for...
The past year saw a surge in eCommerce revenues worldwide and, according to a new Forrester Research (http://www.forrester.com) report.
Over the next year, Forrester expects eCommerce revenues to grow as more brands plan out their global road maps and start to execute on their international eCommerce strategies. Shoppers' online buying habits will continue to evolve, presenting new opportunities. In the new report, Forrester discusses the arrival and importance of several eCommerce and identifies eight trends that will gain momentum in the Age of the customer in 2014. The research group says here are the top five trends to watch out for:
° Mobile traffic and sales will continue to climb. In 2014, the percentage of traffic and total online orders placed via mobile devices are set to increase in virtually every market worldwide, and Forrester expects that a growing number of brands will launch new...
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Jan 14
Strategy Analytics: TV's not dying; it's...
Contrary to some recent melodramatic predictions, the television industry isn't dying but is undergoing a process of rapid change, according to a recent report from Strategy Analytics.
The research group says that the global installed base of TV-addressable screens is in fact in the middle of a second wave of rapid expansion. The first wave peaked in 2007 and was driven by consumer PC adoption.
The current wave peaked in 2012 and is being driven by mobile devices. Together with traditional TVs these "new TV" devices increased the global installed base of TV addressable devices to 5.1 billion at the end of 2013. By 2017 a further two billion TV devices will have been added to the global population.
"TV's impending death has been overstated by some commentators," says David Watkins, director, Connected Home Devices (CHD). "The reality is that, while the television industry is changing and will look different in the future, it is very much alive. TV screens are...
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Jan 13
Americans concerned about the privacy of text messages...
With the news that the National Security Agency tracks the locations of nearly 5 billion cellphones every day overseas, including those belonging to Americans abroad, now more than ever, people are worried about the privacy of their text messages and mobile phone calls.
A new survey from CoverMe, a private messaging app, and SodaHead, the web’s largest opinion-based community, reveals that Americans are very concerned about the security on their phones, the government’s reach and other people reading their text messages—and that level of concern varies according to gender, age, and whether respondents considered themselves ‘liberal’ or ‘conservative’..
The survey reveals that:
° Americans are very concerned about the privacy of their mobile communications. Sixty-five percent of respondents are not confident that their mobile phone comes with adequate security and privacy technology. Thirty-three percent of respondents believe that the government...
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Jan 10
High-speed wireless devices to surge in shipments
The global market for high-speed wireless-enabled devices is set for explosive growth within the next five years as more consumer electronics products take advantage of rapid wireless transfer capabilities, according to a new report from IHS Inc. (http://www.isuppli.com).
Annual shipments of high-speed wireless-enabled devices such as smartphones, televisions and mobile PCs are expected to reach 503 million devices by 2018, up more than tenfold from 49 million units anticipated in 2013, says the research group. Growth during the next three years will be tremendous, ranging from 60% to 120%, with expansion during the last two years of the forecast window moderating somewhat to still-high increases of up to 30%, as shown in the attached figure.
A high-speed wireless-enabled device, as defined by IHS, is one that includes at least one of the following technologies: WirelessHD, WHDI, 802.11ad (WiGig) or...
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Jan 09
Gartner: companies should deploy technologies to...
Companies that address accessibility needs in their IT product development are better positioned to leverage those same assistive technologies to mass market solutions, according to Gartner, Inc. (http://www.gartner.com).
The research group says that people with disabilities (PWD) are an underserved market segment with one billion people worldwide. They and their immediate friends and family have an annual disposable income of more than IS$8 trillion.
"People with disabilities make up 15% of the world 's population and some of the assistive technology marketed to people with disabilities can also be sold to the other 85% of the population that is 'situationally disabled' by their environmental conditions, at work and at play," says Andrew Johnson, managing vice president at Gartner. "Every day situational disabilities include listening to a conference call in a noisy airport, or using a mobile phone...
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Jan 08
Internet of Things installed base to grow to 26...
The Internet of Things (IoT), which excludes PCs, tablets and smartphones, will grow to 26 billion units installed in 2020 representing an almost 30-fold increase from 0.9 billion in 2009, according to Gartner, Inc. (http://www.gartner.com).
The research group said that IoT product and service suppliers will generate incremental revenue exceeding US$300 billion, mostly in services, in 2020. It will result in $1.9 trillion in global economic value-add through sales into diverse end markets.
The Internet of Things is the network of physical objects that contain embedded technology to communicate and sense or interact with their internal states or the external environment.
"The growth in IoT will far exceed that of other connected devices. By 2020, the number of smartphones tablets and PCs in use will reach about 7.3 billion units," said Peter Middleton, research director at Gartner. "In...
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Jan 07
Bluetooth Smart sets the stage for 67% growth in...
Wearable technology, the trend encapsulating everything from fitness trackers to Bluetooth Smart enabled running shoes, is seeing phenomenal growth and high consumer demand. Everyday items such as watches, bracelets, gloves and even hats, are being updated with Bluetooth wireless technology, allowing them to capture data and send it back to an application on a smartphone or tablet.
Bluetooth Smart is fast becoming the de facto connectivity solution for wearable technology, spurred by growth in wearable sports and fitness trackers, which make up 96%of shipped wearable devices in 2013. ABI Research (http://www.abiresearch.com) projects 32 million Bluetooth enabled sports and fitness devices will ship this year alone.
Bluetooth Smart is the intelligent, power-friendly version of Bluetooth wireless technology that is making wearables practical for the mass market. While the power-efficiency of...
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Jan 06
Wearable medical devices market to reach US$5.8...
According to a new market report published by Transparency Market Research (http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com) the global market for wearable medical devices was valued at US$2 billion in 2012 and is expected to reach a value of $5.8 billion in 2019, growing at a CAGR [compound annual growth rate] of 16.4% from 2013 to 2019.
Wearable medical devices defined in the strictest sense are devices with sensors attached to the body that detect and monitor changes in body signatures of various areas and organs. The research group says the meek wrist watch that was used to monitor only heart rate in the last decade has today been transformed into a powerful gadget that can today store vast quantities of data on patient information such as SPO2, heart rate, temperature, blood pressure and water content in the body among several other intelligent diagnostic parameters....
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Jan 03
ABI Research: portable speakers powering the digital...
Digital speakers represent an important accessory that enables consumers to extend their smartphone or tablet from a personal to a shared experience. This class of speakers, with its smaller size and high quality sound, has enabled the change from electronics as the center of a room to electronics which complement modern design.
The digital speaker market, which includes portable speakers, speakers with dock, sound bars, and network audio systems, is expected to grow from over 47 million units in 2013 to nearly 61 million by 2018, with portable speakers representing over half of the market by the end of the forecast window, according to ABI Research (http://www.abiresearch.com)
"iOS-centric digital speaker products, like speakers with docks, lead the market, but a turning point came when Apple switched from the 30 pin connector to its new Lightning connector, compelling customers to place...
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Jan 02
The Northern Spy: Prognostications for 2014
By Rick Sutcliffe
A year of consolidation looms in parts of the high-tech landscape. For instance, television manufacturers will continue to exit this unprofitable sector and find other ways to (try to) make money.
Sony in particular remains problematic. The Spy recently purchased a Sony 1040 receiver as both reviews and specs seemed promising. After all, very few receivers at any price have all of AirPlay, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, and BlueTooth, and many no longer offer phono inputs. Sony's model has them all at a reasonable price point.
However, finding stock has been a problem, and this seems more than just an end-of-model-year issue. Yes, after years of being behind the feature curve, Sony surpassed the others in receiver featuritis last year, but was the company too late with too little? And, can they turn their TV business around? Is it worth trying? Time will tell, but there's not much good news coming out of Sony these days, and it has to be...
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Jan 02
Berg Insight: mobile location platform revenues will...
According to a new research report from the analyst firm Berg Insight (www.berginsight.com), the global market for location platforms will grow steadily in the next few years, mainly driven by the emerging indoor location segment.
At the same time, the market for location platforms deployed by mobile operators is maturing. Annual revenues for GMLC/SMLC and SUPL A-GPS servers, passive location platforms, as well as middleware deployed by mobile operators are forecasted to grow from an estimated € 190 million in 2012 to € 275 million in 2018. The market is primarily driven by public safety and lawful intercept mandates that require network operators to invest in location platforms enabling location of any handset.
Overall, the growing end-user demand for commercial location-based services (LBS) will not have a substantial effect on the market for mobile network location platforms. Most mass market...
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Dec 31
Gartner: 20% of new tech spending will be on as-a-...
Organizations’ need to drive innovation and growth, coupled with a limited budget and the mainstreaming of consuming technology “as-a-service”, is creating the perfect condition for integrated platform solutions.
Susan Tan, research director at the Gartner research group (http://www.gartner.com) says that new technologies — such as cloud, mobile, analytics, social, sensors and in-memory computing—- offer the promise of innovation and creation of competitive advantages. However, enterprises face challenges to their adoption. Organizations still struggle with tight budgets and inflexible legacy systems, and many organizations lack resources, skill sets, appetite and time to adopt these new technologies in a conventional manner.
Traditional implementations that take months and years to build cannot be agile enough to keep up with changing technologies or respond quickly to fleeting market opportunities,...
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Dec 27
Mobile gambling user numbers to rise by 100 million...
Over the next five years, the number of mobile and/or tablet owners using their devices to gamble will increase by 100 million, meaning that 164 million people will either place a bet, visit a mobile casino or buy a lottery ticket on their device in 2018. These findings come from Juniper Research’s latest report on mobile gambling, which highlighted that the strongest growth would come from the North American market.
According to the report although growth has been slow in the US since the DoJ (Department of Justice) ruling in 2011, the number of users in the region is expected to pick up sharply from 2014 onwards. This will occur as states which have not yet fully legislated on remote gambling make progress following successful services launching in Nevada and New Jersey. In addition, inter-state poker, where two players in separate, regulated markets play against each other, is likely to become a reality in the medium term, further driving mobile/tablet gambling usage,...
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Dec 26
Early adopters of mobile websites are not who you...
Research from optimized website specialist Telnames (http://www.telnames.com) says that the businesses leading the way in adopting mobile websites are not who you might think.
The businesses leading the way in adopting mobile websites – and capitalizing on the consumer boom in mobile search - are not the larger hi-tech companies with established and mature web presences that people might expect. It is the UK’s small and micro businesses that have most enthusiastically adopted mobile technology.
The explosive growth in mobile search traffic represents a major opportunity for businesses looking to attract browsers on the move or searching at home on their smartphone and tablet devices, and Telnames’ research shows that small and micro enterprise owners in particular have been quick to grasp the benefits of establishing a mobile-ready web presence.
According to research by Google, 95% of...
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Dec 23
Growth of LTE-based in-car Wi-Fi hot spots to boost...
Although the majority of rear-seat entertainment usage is likely to be based on BYOD [bring your own device], ABI Research (www.abiresearch.com) forecasts that the number of embedded original equipment manufacturer [OEM] supplied rear-seat entertainment displays shipped in cars will increase to reach 13.3 million units globally by 2020.
Rear-seat entertainment systems, typically incorporating DVD players, have been offered by OEMs and numerous aftermarket suppliers for many years. However, the higher bandwidth of LTE and its increasing coverage in North America, Europe and other parts of the world means that OEM Wi-Fi hot spot solutions will enable a host of new in-car applications such as video streaming, gaming and even video-conferencing, as well as enabling multiple devices to be connected simultaneously.
"Although we expect the majority of people to use their own smartphone or tablet devices in...
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Dec 20
Gartner: BYOD an applications strategy, not just a...
Bring your own device (BOYD) is not just a purchasing policy and needs to be approached more broadly with the applications and strategies designed for today's world, according to Gartner, Inc.
While most enterprises today are increasingly feeling the imperative to "do mobile," many don't know where to begin and there are many obstacles to success. The research group says the key decision about BYOD is one of applications architecture and solutions design.
"Designing your applications to meet the demands of BYOD is not the same as setting usage policies or having strategic sourcing plans that mandate a particular platform," said Darryl Carlton, research director at Gartner. "BYOD should be a design principle that provides you with a vendor neutral applications portfolio and a flexible future-proof architecture. If the applications exhibit technical constraints that limit choice and limit deployment, then the purchasing policy is irrelevant."
Most...
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Dec 19
Study shows how tablet users share content
MAZ (www.mazdigital.com) — whose publishing platform powers over 600 apps on the Apple App Store, Google Play and Amazon Appstore — has unveiled a study showing how users are sharing content from tablets.
The most interesting finding of the study was the fact that 72% of all shared content is shared via email. While a lot of digital strategists have written off email as an outdated tool compared to more modern social networks, the data suggests that despite being presented with the option to share to Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or Tumblr, users continue to prefer sharing content to their friends, family or coworkers via email.
With the recent buzz about young people moving to closed networks such as Snapchat, this study supports the idea that sharing to individuals and smaller groups may be preferable over public-facing networks. As for social networks, the study shows that users prefer to share to...
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Dec 17
Gartner: smart watches won't dominate consumer...
Despite the hype surrounding smart watches, they are unlikely to be featured on many consumers' holiday wish lists this year, according to Gartner, Inc. (www.gartner.com). The research group says that premium pricing paired with an unclear value proposition will steer consumers' spending toward tablets and fitness bands, leading to lackluster sales of smart watches this holiday season.
Smart watches are a product subset of the wearable electronics market that caters to different industry verticals and consumer groups that include fitness, health-monitoring, monitoring the elderly and law enforcement (tracking). Smart watches themselves are not a new device but they have recently evolved from the health and fitness field with an attempt to enter the mainstream consumer market by adding communication and more smart features.
"Samsung and other well-known vendors have recently entered the smart watch space, yet...
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Dec 16
Majority of consumers plan to shop online this holiday...
Based on a survey of shoppers completed by Overstock.com, a discount online shopping retailer, 75% plan to shop on Black Friday (Nov. 29) and of those, 57% plan to do it online. Cyber Monday (Dec. 2) will bring in 66% of shoppers online. The survey also revealed that consumers expect savings of up to 40% off during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday retail period.
"Online shopping allows consumers to make purchases comfortably from their home while avoiding the holiday rush, waiting in line, fighting traffic and suffering the weather," says Overstock.com Chairman and CEO Patrick M. Byrne. "Overstock offers great deals on high-quality products that can be shipped directly to your door."
The majority of online shoppers will be younger consumers. According to a study by CFI Group, 50% of millennials intend to spend more than 40% of their holiday shopping budgets online, compared to 38 percent of baby boomers.
Overstock.com's survey also showed that 74% of shoppers...
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Dec 12
Chip firms, OEMs to enjoy strong revenue growth as...
The semiconductor and electronics original equipment manufacturing (OEM) industries are set to enjoy significant revenue growth in 2013 — partly due to their tight management of inventory levels — according to a Supply Chain Inventory market brief from IHS Inc. (www.isuppli.com).
Among OEMs in six categories, total revenue in the third quarter reached an estimated US$493 billion, up a robust 7% from $462 billion in the second quarter. Revenue in the final quarter of the year is expected to climb at an even more blistering pace, reaching $540 billion with sequential growth of 10%.
In contrast to the strong performance for the two last quarters of the second half, the first two quarters of the year started out more quietly, with growth in the second quarter reaching only 2%. Industrial electronics was the strongest of the six segments being counted in the third quarter, but wireless communications will finish...
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Dec 12
Android OEMs expand their enterprise smartphone...
According to a new report from ABI Research (www.abiresearch.com), Android smartphone OEMs [original equipment manufacturers] are taking advantage of a solid presence among consumers and mobile business users to drive more business entity smartphone purchases and expand use in the enterprise.
ABI Research predicts that shipment revenues from Android smartphones used by mobile business customers will grow from US$54 billion in 2013 to over $92 billion globally by the end of 2018. ABI Research analyzed Android OEM enterprise features and market presence to provide mobile business customer adoption forecasts for six OEMs including HTC, Huawei, LG, Motorola Mobility, Samsung, and ZTE.
"Despite a significant presence among employees in the workplace, businesses have not allowed or have limited the access of Android devices to enterprise applications and systems," says ABI Resesarch Senior Analyst, Jason...
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Dec 11
26% of U.S. broadband households eyeing an Internet-...
The Parks Associates (www.parksassociates.com) research group finds growing consumer interest in smart home automation solutions, with 26% of U.S. broadband households planning to purchase a smart thermostat during the 2013 holiday season.
"Roughly 25% of broadband households with new home management and home entertainment equipment report experiencing problems with these devices on a monthly basis, a surprisingly high amount," says Patrice Samuels, research analyst, Parks Associates. "Robust technical support will help consumers to achieve the promise of these devices and mitigate consumer frustration."
Parks Associates research finds 30% of consumers with electronic door locks regularly experience technical problems with these solutions, including 9% on a daily basis. Over 20% of smart thermostat owners regularly experience problems, including 12% on a daily basis.
"IP-enabled...
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Dec 10
One billion smartphones will have location-based...
As smartphones embrace always-on, ubiquitous location, location-based sensor fusion will become a standard feature, according to ABI Research (www.abiresearch.com). Location-based sensor fusion will enable the dawn of the quantified self, ambient intelligence, as well as provide huge potential around advertising and retail, says the research group.
"Sensor fusion is vital in enabling a consistent location experience, RF mapping, and the industry to scale rapidly," says ABI Research Senior Analyst Patrick Connolly. "Unfortunately, it is not just a case of putting in a 9-axis sensor to achieve this. Highly complex algorithms are required to optimize sensor outputs, integrate with other location technologies and combine with machine learning and data-fusion algorithms. Sensor fusion will surpass Wi-Fi and BLE as the most important handset-based indoor location technology by 2017."
ABI Research has...
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Dec 09
Smartphones, tablets revolutionize online content...
Driven by rapid adoption of smartphones and tablets, international consumers of digital media — video, video games, music and books — are moving away from traditional household ownership models to individual rental models, increasing the pressure on content publishers to increase investment and innovation.
This is according to "The Age of Curation: From Abundance to Discovery," an eight-country, 6,000 consumer survey and report to be presented on November 21 at the 2013 Forum D’Avignon, by Bain & Company (www.bain.com), aglobal business consulting firm. Key findings include:
° Smartphone ownership in developed markets (the U.S., U.K., France and Germany) jumped from 49% on average in 2012 to 64% in 2013, while increasing from 24% to 37% in developing markets (Brazil, Russia, India and China)
° Tablet ownership rose from 18% on average in 2012 to 39% in 2013 in developed markets, while increasing from 13...
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Dec 06
Americans reach for smartphones in unexpected places
With nearly 170 million Americans using smartphones today, mobile devices are now synonymous with everyday activities such as email, web browsing and communication via texts or social media. A number of Americans are actually reaching for their phones in some of the most unexpected places and using them for more than just staying in touch while on-the-go, according to results of a new nationwide survey released by LG Electronics.
Conducted by Kelton, the "Smartphone Secrets" survey of 1,152 Americans age 18 and over found that nearly one in five would never hide the fact that they are using their mobile device, no matter where they are. Some of the most shocking and surprising places in which Americans are not afraid to whip out their smartphones include:
° Places of worship: 48% of smartphone owners confess they would be comfortable using their devices in a place of worship.
° In the bedroom: 77% of smartphone owners admit they would openly use their phones...
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Dec 05
Gartner: personal worlds, Internet of Everything are...
With the digital world upon us, digitalization will significantly change the technology market through the Internet of Things, according to Gartner, Inc. (www.gartner.com). While IT spending in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) will show an average annual growth rate of 2.2 percent through 2017, the Internet of Things (things, people, places and systems) will create new markets and a new economy, according to the research group.
"The traditional IT market is not going to grow at a faster rate any time soon, if ever. Increased growth will come from the non-traditional IT market," says Peter Sondergaard, senior vice president at Gartner and global head of Research. "While in 2015 the combined IT and telecom market will hit nearly US$4 trillion, the incremental revenue generated by the Internet of Things’ suppliers is estimated to reach $309 billion per year by 2020. Half of this activity will be new start-ups...
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Dec 04
Russia records massive mobile app growth
Game Insight (www.game-insight.com), a publisher/developer of mobile/social games, and J’son & Partners has presented new market research on the Russian mobile market, comparing growth in mobile applications and devices in Russia against global figures.
According to the study, the mobile application market volume in Russia will exceed US$330 million for 2013. In addition to calculating total mobile app market volume, the study also compares key trends and figures in the Russian mobile market against those of different countries, as well as against global aggregates.
For instance, for the last two years, the average percentage of Russian mobile internet users has increased by a factor of 10. In fact, mobile internet expansion in Russia has outpaced that of other developing mobile markets by a sizeable margin, with penetration three times higher than in China and nine times higher than in India....
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Dec 03
Mobile broadband modem, router markets decline
Over the first half of 2013 about US$2.5 billion worth of mobile broadband modems and routers for computing and consumer electronics connectivity have shipped. For the full year, market intelligence firm ABI Research (www.abiresearch.com) forecasts 92.1 million of these 3G and 4G modems and routers will be shipped worldwide to mobile network operators, retailers, and device manufacturers.
This represents 0% growth year-over-year from the 92.4 million modems shipped during 2012. The mix of modem form-factors is changing due to declining USB volumes, offset by increased mobile hotspot routers and embedded modem modules.
"The use of USB for the addition of mobile broadband to portable computers has peaked," says ABI Research Senior Practice Director Jeff Orr. "The diversification of choices for the new era of computing can be seen by these trends in modems sold through the aftermarket."
Modem...
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Dec 02
The Northern Spy: curmudgeonly yours
By Rick Sutcliffe
Following up on comments in this space last month, the Spy still has had none of the issues reported by others who've adopted Mavericks. Apart from the need to upgrade a handful of programs, all continues smooth. However, iTim's elves are busy at work releasing betas of the first incremental upgrade to fix issues some have seen. Of greater interest might be what they're doing with system XI.
And, the reader will recall the troubles reported here with his own hosting company's mail server (another millisecond older and deeper in spam with faked to, from, and reply-to addresses). Enabling MCP (Message Content Protection) in MailScanner to scan and delete on specific content did blue list and refuse much of the offending mail, which on that change alone declined from 80% of all arriving messages to about 20%.
But, subject, content, and other characteristics kept changing, and even adding more block lists to the scanner only...
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Dec 02
Mobile augmented reality users to approach 200 million...
New findings from Juniper Research (www.juniperresearch.com) shows that the mobile Augmented Reality (AR) market, is set to increase dramatically from 60 million unique users this year to nearly 200 million in 2018.
The market will expand from the early adopting gaming segment and navigation based utility to becoming an integral part of the consumer’s ecosystem, according to the research group. Despite initial trepidation and single use applications of the technology, Juniper forecasts AR to become a key future platform for communication and commerce.
AR has a potential to engage a new generation of consumers in a unique manner, combining the personal nature of mobile devices with the Internet’s wealth of accessible information. Juniper’s report finds that as the market matures, the app ecosystem is set to expand rapidly over the forecast period.
Initial innovations will stem from...
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