Verizon Enterprise Solutions, on Monday released a new report “State of the Market: The Internet of Things (IoT) 2015: Discover How IoT is Transforming Business Results”.  The report 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.
 
“When you look across the spectrum, IoT covers a multitude of solutions, from wearable devices, to remote monitoring of energy management devices to industrial transportation to improve safety and efficiency. New use cases are created every day; however, the business case for IoT and enterprise adoption often gets overlooked. Within the past year, amid an improving economy, we’ve seen a number of new entrants starting to use IoT as a roadmap to improve their customers’ experiences, accelerate growth and create new business models that are driving societal innovation,” said Mark Bartolomeo, vice president IoT Connected Solutions at Verizon.
 
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.