Internet of Things Gains Momentum Among Businesses, New Verizon Report Reveals

A new report from Verizon Enterprise Solutions, “State of the Market: The Internet of Things (IoT) 2015: Discover How IoT is Transforming Business Results,” released, shows that enterprise adoption of the Internet of Things is starting to gain momentum. The report details key factors driving the increase in IoT deployments and includes guidance for business and public sector leaders on developing an IoT strategy.

According to Verizon’s report, the Internet of Things is being fueled by technological, political and social factors that are driving more organizations to adopt IoT-enabled solutions. For example, the use of social media and mobile technology has transformed consumer and citizen expectations. Also, the declining costs of sensors, connectivity and processing power have made IoT a more viable proposition to a broader set of organizations. Changing regulatory requirements across a number of industries are also making an impact.

The report notes that “off-the-shelf” IoT solutions are starting to materialize with greater frequency as a replacement for highly customized solutions, which have historically characterized many enterprise IoT implementations. And a broader IoT landscape brings greater security challenges. Verizon notes that digital certificates can help address growing C-suite and public concerns and meet regulatory demands around IoT and security.

Enterprise IoT Growth Forecast

New research commissioned by Verizon from ABI Research forecasts massive growth broadly, with the number of business-to-business IoT connections — more than quadrupling between 2014 and 2020 — rising to an estimated 5.4 billion connections globally. In the automotive industry, Verizon’s telematics experts note that 14 car manufacturers account for 80 percent of the worldwide automotive market, and all of them have a connected car strategy. Additionally, ABI Research cites that organizations will introduce more than 13 million health and fitness tracking devices into the workplace by 2018. Verizon experts predict that by 2025 smart cities capabilities will become a critical consideration for companies deciding where to invest and open facilities, due to their impact on operating costs and talent availability.

Verizon’s IoT Growth Supports Current Trends

Verizon saw a 45 percent year-over-year revenue growth in its IoT business in 2014, with 4GLTE activations growing by 135 percent. Today, Verizon manages more than 15 million IoT-enabled connections for a wide range of industries.

According to the report, machine-to-machine connections managed by Verizon resulted in growth in 2014 in the following sectors: Manufacturing 204 percent, Finance and Insurance 128 percent, Media and Entertainment 120 percent, Home Monitoring 89 percent, Retail and Hospitality 88 percent, Transportation and Distribution 83 percent, Energy and Utilities 49 percent, Public Sector/Smart Cities 46 percent, Healthcare and Pharmaceutical 40 percent.