Digital Lifescapes

Ongoing investments in Digital Transformation projects continue across the globe. Worldwide information technology (IT) and business services revenue is expected to grow by 5.6 percent in constant currency during 2022, according to the latest market study by International Data Corporation ( IDC ). The 2022 market growth will increase by 160 basis points from IDC's October 2021 forecast. The improved market view reflects 2021 bookings and pipelines by several large services providers, an improved economic outlook, and an inflationary impact on the services market. IDC believes that the market will continue to expand throughout the next few years at a rate of 4-5 percent, representing an overall increase of 40 to 80 basis points each year, pushing the market's long-term growth rate to 4.6 percent -- that's up slightly from the previous forecast of 4.3 percent. IT and Business Services Market Development The Americas services market is forecast to grow by 5.3 percent in 2022 -

After years of slow growth and limited use cases, the Virtual Reality (VR) market is now forecast to grow significantly over the next five years. Consumer interest in VR games and media continues to grow after the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated activity. At the same time, the need for employee enablement and immersive content within the enterprise environment remains strong. According to the latest market study by ABI Research, over 90 million Head Mounted Display (HMD) shipments in 2027 will drive total VR market revenues to reach over $95 billion across hardware, software, and services. Virtual Reality Market Development "The virtual reality market is no stranger to false starts, with identifiable efforts in VR dating back to the 1980s and 1990s. While the technology never found purchase results, the increased capability of VR hardware combined with the demand for immersive content in numerous markets, presents a significant opportunity," says Eric Abbruzzese, research direc

Senior executives in the world’s largest and most complex organizations will develop the insights required to achieve lasting Digital Transformation. Gartner has identified a model for digital business growth that binds together data, analytics, technology, and forward-looking transformation capabilities. The Gartner Research Board said that data and analytics (D&A) leaders are uniquely positioned to drive this strategic organizational change that will make their companies behave like 'digital native' leaders.  "The most advanced and successful D&A leaders are driving new opportunities to use digital capabilities – often data and analytics products – to capture value. Those opportunities should directly connect to the business priorities," said Mario Faria, vice president at Gartner . Digital Business Market Development At the same time, some leaders are using digital and D&A to create whole new business models. These leaders – which Gartner named the CxO

The telecom marketplace continues to change as more CIOs and CTOs seek ways to improve voice services and cut costs. Moreover, the mobile telecom market has been prone to digital disruption, as voice over IP (VoIP) communication has evolved. The use of fixed-line telephone services has declined steadily, while there have been significant increases in the use of mobile phone services, Wi-Fi calling services, and over-the-top (OTT) mobile voice. Plus, the roll-out of superior mobile network connectivity modes -- such as 4G LTE, 5G, and in the foreseeable future, 6G networks -- will continue to transform the global communications market. Mobile Telecom Market Development The decline in fixed-line telephone services is reducing for a number of reasons, but it is primarily due to a significant increase in mobile phone and media tablet device ownership supporting data-intensive applications -- such as mobile games, mobile videos, and location-based services.  According to the latest worldwid

Public cloud computing solutions are moving closer to the edge of networks where CIOs and CTOs are hosting new apps. The edge journey is well underway for forward-looking organizations as they seek to connect with customers, improve operational efficiency, and adopt digital business technologies to drive innovation. The latest worldwide market study by International Data Corporation (IDC) found that three-quarters of organizations plan to increase their edge computing spending over the next two years with an average increase of 37 percent. A combination of factors is driving this increased spending at the edge. Cloud Edge Computing Market Development The performance requirements of expanding workloads and new use cases that leverage artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) demand greater compute capacity at the edge. In addition, the amount of data being stored in edge locations are rapidly expanding, and organizations plan to keep this data longer. As a result, the numbe

The ongoing adoption of flexible working models within the enterprise market has significant implications for typical IT organizations that must now support knowledge workers and front-line employees that operate outside the corporate network perimeter. The global COVID-19 pandemic created IT networking and security challenges. The expansion of the distributed workforce, an increasing reliance on cloud computing infrastructure, and the requirement to securely connect online employees -- wherever they choose to work, at any given moment in time. Legacy IT solutions that have rigid network underlays and a requirement for on-premises infrastructure cannot adequately deal with these trends. This 'Anywhere, Anytime Workplace' led to demand for new Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) solutions, with networking and security delivered as-a-service. Anywhere, Anytime Workplace Market Development   Although converging networking and security capabilities offer enterprises a promising solut

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed rule changes that would require climate-related disclosures and periodic reports -- including risks that are likely to have a material impact on a corporation. Business technologies might be a key component of responding to new SEC requirements. Cloud service sustainability, carbon footprint measurement, and advanced energy grid management software are three environmental technologies that could reach early mainstream adoption within one to three years. "Environmental sustainability cannot be the responsibility of just a few industries -- if our climate is to be protected, sustainable business must be a global priority," said Annette Zimmermann, vice president at Gartner . Sustainability Technology Market Development According to the Gartner assessment, the transition to a net-zero economy will be as disruptive as the industrial revolution or the digital revolution -- requiring new technologies, business models, leade

Digital identity is a concept that is constantly evolving and becoming increasingly aligned with allied areas, such as security, privacy, and management of identity-related data. Within the government sector, this emerging technology has significant upside potential for growth. According to the latest worldwide market study by Juniper Research, the number of users of digital identity documents globally will exceed 6.5 billion by 2026 -- that's up from 4.2 billion in 2022. This expansion of over 50 percent has been accelerated by the global COVID-19 pandemic and reflects the growing importance of digital identity in sectors such as government services. Digital Identity Market Development According to the Juniper assessment, a digital identity document is a digital representation of a physical identity document. The new research found that ease and equality of access are critical factors for the use of digital identity in government services. Juniper analysts recommend that governmen

Two years of the global COVID-19 pandemic forced many organizations to operate remotely -- with the majority of knowledge worker employees working from home. While the virus evolved into new variants, some business leaders were already contemplating a 'return to office' scenario. Clearly, some leaders struggle to understand what their employees want, and how to support them to do their jobs in the most safe, productive, and satisfying way. However, the predictable significant increase in employee resignations should help them to reconsider. Future of Work Solutions Market Development IDC recently published results from a survey of the Asia-Pacific (APEJ) region, which provides insights for companies to understand their workforce and how to accommodate them to ensure the best productivity and business continuity. "Great Resignation is the latest buzzword. As employees reassess their current employment, talent retention is a top business agenda item for organizations,"