Digital Lifescapes

Like so many other innovators across the globe, forward-thinking organizations in the Asia-Pacific region are reinventing themselves with a goal to fuel renewed digital business growth. As economic activities return to pre-COVID pandemic levels, these savvy leaders are building technology-enabled business models. Cloud computing has emerged as the core foundation of this renewed business technology focus, leading to Asia-Pacific public cloud services spending growth of over 38 percent to $36.4 billion in 2020, according to the latest market study by International Data Corporation (IDC). "Cloud services have addressed more than cost management challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. Cloud services and technologies have been the basis for the rapid introduction of new digital services to support remote workers and online customers, and it’s been the speed of implementation and low up-front costs that have enabled that," said Chris Morris, vice president at IDC . Cloud Computin...

Both telecom service providers and large enterprises from different vertical industries are driving significant growth of private mobile network deployments within Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, and Singapore, according to the latest market study by ABI Research. Together they will create a $7 billion market opportunity by 2025 within the Asia-Pacific region -- accounting for more than 65 percent of global private network revenues. By 2030, developed markets in North America and Europe will account for more than $16 billion -- representing 25 percent of global private network revenues. "These findings show the great regional variability that we see for private network deployments," said Leo Gergs, research analyst at ABI Research . Private Mobile Networks Market Development Two primary factors are creating the drive for private networks. One, a rising number of national spectrum liberalization initiatives are allowing enterprises access to licensed mobile ...

The 'future of work' for call center or contact center employees will include more 'flexible working' location options. Seventy percent of customer service and support employees want to continue to work from home (WFH) at least once a week after the pandemic ends, according to the latest market study by Gartner. In September 2020, Gartner surveyed 5,000 employees, including 550 customer service professionals, and found that service employees who traditionally did not have many opportunities to WFH are now used to it and like it, and they wish to continue in some capacity once the pandemic is over. This is in line with most service leaders who believe WFH is here to stay post-pandemic. Eighty-one percent of service leaders believe between 30 percent to 80 percent of their workforce will primarily be working from home two years from now. Future Hybrid Workforce Market Development "As service leaders weigh the future of their work from home programs, they’ll have to b...

Leading the way forward, fintech vendors have offered a variety of digital payment solutions across regional financial service markets. Plus, due in part to the disruptive COVID-19 global pandemic, and the move away from cash-dependent payment methods, digital wallets are now gaining broad adoption. According to the latest worldwide market study by Juniper Research, the number of unique digital wallet users will exceed 4.4 billion globally in 2025 -- rising from an estimated 2.6 billion in 2020. Juniper analysts found that mobile phone wallets are driving this impressive 70 percent growth, as fintech mobile app payments rapidly scale across geographical and vertical industry markets. Digital Payment Market Development Furthermore, the increasing alignment between in-person and remote commerce channels is leading to greater use of smartphone app wallets, with web app wallet use confined to high-value purchases or complex bill payments. Juniper Research recommends that retailers and othe...

The global market for intelligent business technology solutions continues to evolve, as more CIOs and CTOs seek ways to automate routine tasks and associated business processes. The solutions have gained momentum in the marketplace as offerings matured and became mainstream across many industries. Worldwide revenues for the artificial intelligence (AI) market -- including software, hardware, and services -- are forecast to grow 16.4 percent year-over-year in 2021 to $327.5 billion, according to the latest worldwide market study by International Data Corporation (IDC). Artificial Intelligence Solutions Market Development By 2024, the market is expected to break the $500 billion mark with a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.5 percent and total global revenues reaching $554.3 billion. Among the three technology categories, software represented 88 percent of the total AI market revenues in 2020. However, it is the slowest growing category with a five-year CAGR of 17.3 perc...

Enterprise IT Security investment in critical infrastructure has been consistent over the last 12 months, regardless of huge disruptions from the global Covid-19 pandemic. The resulting effect has been mostly in increased demand for secure 'remote working' connectivity. Cybersecurity spending announced by governments has not really changed significantly, with most maintaining similar funding planned in previous years, and an average year-on-year growth rate between 5 percent and 10 percent. According to the latest worldwide market study by ABI Research, cybersecurity spending for critical infrastructure (CI) will increase by $9 billion over the next year to reach $105.99 billion in 2021. IT Critical Infrastructure Market Development The primary challenge of the Covid-19 pandemic has been for CI operators to ensure that systems and services keep running smoothly, despite an increasingly distributed and remote enterprise workforce. As such, greater emphasis has been placed on ens...

The quest to accelerate digital transformation has advanced technologies that enable the rapid development of new applications and associated eCommerce business models. Now, CIOs and CTOs must support line of business leader demand for more open innovation and strategic commercial advantages. As a result, the worldwide low-code development technologies market is projected to total $13.8 billion in 2021 -- that's an increase of 22.6 percent from 2020, according to the latest worldwide market study by Gartner.  The surge in remote development during the global COVID-19 pandemic will continue to boost low-code adoption, despite ongoing IT cost optimization efforts. Low-Code Software Market Development "While low-code application development is not new, a confluence of digital disruptions, hyper-automation, and the rise of composable business has led to an influx of tools and rising demand," said Fabrizio Biscotti, research vice president at Gartner . Low-code, applied as a ...

The mobile voice communication services market has been prone to technological disruption and over-the-top (OTT) software application innovation. Over the past decade, the mobile voice services landscape has been profoundly affected by several ground-breaking advances in new technology. These include the penetration of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning in communication services, the rise of highly customized OTT mobile voice and messaging apps, and the deployment of superior cellular wireless connectivity modes -- such as 4G LTE and 5G technology. Mobile Communications Market Development Looking ahead, demand for video calling solutions will drive additional growth opportunities. According to the latest worldwide market study by Juniper Research, the number of mobile video calling services reached 1.8 billion globally in 2020 -- rising from 1.2 billion in 2019. This represents a growth of 50 percent over 12 months, as the global COVID-19 pandemic fuelled the need for mo...

As more enterprises adopt a 'hybrid work by design' model, we'll witness the rapid evolution of traditional offices and digital workspaces, plus a new and compelling approach to executive leadership that will drive innovation and productivity -- fueling exponential digital business growth. IDC has completed a worldwide market study that contextualizes their 'Future of Work' predictions for 2021. The ongoing transformation of the environment for typical office-based knowledge workers has been one of the hottest topics of discussion among CEOs and their leadership team. With the COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacting every aspect of office work, there is growing interest in developing a holistic strategy that focuses on business technology upgrades, and the culture of organizations, to deliver an enhanced experience that will result in a sustained competitive advantage. Global 'Future of Work' Market Development "Every aspect of 'Future of Work...

Enterprise decision-makers are seeking to identify the best deployment models for a trial private cellular wireless network initiative. Many of the CIOs and CTOs at progressive companies and forward-looking public sector agencies are already defining requirements for fifth-generation (5G) infrastructure investments. With 5G deployments proliferating, the importance of network slicing for the enterprise domain is set to grow. According to the latest worldwide market study by ABI Research, the demand for 5G slicing will be propelled primarily by heavy industry verticals. Industrial manufacturing, cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X), and logistics alone will potentially generate cumulative revenues of $12 billion by 2026, representing a significant portion of an overall 5G slicing market that will likely exceed the $20 billion mark. 5G Network Slicing Market Development Much of the upside growth discussion at present focuses on how various industry verticals can alleviate the operation...

Given the ongoing reports from the SolarWinds Orion breach, most senior executives agree that Information Technology (IT) security must be a priority that includes all enterprise leaders in the decision-making process of ensuring that all assets are fully protected. The big picture : new revelations suggest that the access gained into SolarWinds software was only one part of a broader Russian hacking campaign that impacted other providers. And the initial point of entry, or the ultimate goal, remains unknown. Furthermore, the primary target was stealing intellectual property (IP), instead of customer data. Why is this fact significant? Most public company cyber insurance policies do not cover losses from the theft of intellectual property assets. Therefore, these losses directly impact the firm's shareholders. Cybersecurity Solutions Market Development By 2025, 40 percent of boards of directors will have a dedicated cybersecurity committee overseen by a qualified board member -- t...

During the last decade, mobile app developers and start-up fintech vendors have offered a variety of innovative digital wallet solutions across global markets. Due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic and the move away from cash-based payments, digital wallet apps have gained rapid new user adoption. Initially, digital wallets centered on providing easy eCommerce payments or consumer person-to-person payments. This early growth enabled large tech companies -- such as Google, Apple, and PayPal -- to launch services and achieve a presence across the online payments and global retail ecosystems. Digital Wallet App Market Development According to the latest worldwide market study by Juniper Research, the total consumer spending via digital wallet apps will exceed $10 trillion in 2025 -- that's up from an estimated $5.5 trillion in 2020. Moreover, the research findings found a dramatic 83 percent growth in digital wallet spending will be fuelled by the heightened adoption of digital payment...

Across the globe, mobile network operators continue to invest in public network infrastructure to support the growing demand for new applications. Moreover, there is an increasing need for purpose-built private cellular networks that enable the deployment of new Internet of Things (IoT) apps. The fourth-generation (4G) long-term evolution (LTE) mobile technology standard and the fifth-generation (5G) standard are the foundation for these new emerging wireless network use cases. Private LTE/5G infrastructure is any 3GPP-based LTE and/or 5G network deployed for a specific enterprise or industrial customer that provides 'dedicated access'. Private Wireless Network Market Development It includes networks that may utilize dedicated -- licensed, unlicensed, or shared -- spectrum, dedicated infrastructure, and private devices embedded with unique subscriber identity module (SIM) chips.  Furthermore, private LTE/5G infrastructure carries traffic native to a specific organization, with ...

The ongoing growth of cellular wireless network applications creates new demand for emerging technologies. Fifth-generation (5G) wireless communication includes several network layers that leverage technology such as Open Radio Access Network (Open RAN), network slicing, and cloud edge computing. Within cloud-edges, the broader Artificial Intelligence (AI) industry is witnessing a migration of AI to the edge. According to the latest worldwide market study by ABI Research, the edge AI training and inference market for chipsets is expected to grow from $2.6 billion in 2020 to $10.7 billion in 2025, at a CAGR of 35 percent. Furthermore, new enterprise use cases place new performance, agility, and latency requirements on the network. These, along with the ongoing quest to drive new growth, are compelling the industry to shed human-intensive networks in favor of an intelligence-driven ecosystem. 5G Network Market Development According to the ABI assessment, telecom service providers are alr...

Any market momentum lost in 2020 for digital transformation initiatives will now be regained in 2021 as large enterprise CEOs, and their board of directors, approve IT spending acceleration. Moreover, in anticipation of a recovery within the Global Networked Economy, savvy leaders are investing in key digital business priorities with the intent to gain a strategic competitive advantage. Worldwide IT spending is projected to total $3.9 trillion in 2021 -- that's an increase of 6.2 percent from 2020, according to the latest market study by Gartner. In contrast, worldwide IT spending declined by 3.2 percent in 2020 as CIOs prioritized spending on technology and services that were deemed mission-critical during the initial stages of the pandemic. Digital Transformation Market Development Gartner says the speed of digital transformation in 2020 to satisfy remote working, remote education, and new social norms presented lockdowns and social distancing measures as double-edged swords...

When you consider all the industries most impacted by the economic disruption in 2020, telecom service providers likely do not come to mind. However, global mobile communications revenue was significantly impacted last year. Moreover, within the United Kingdom, the situation for incumbent mobile service providers will become even more complex and challenging during 2021, and beyond. All because of Brexit. International Mobile Roaming Market Development According to the latest worldwide market study by Juniper Research, the number of international mobile roaming subscribers dropped by 73 percent to 243 million globally in 2020 -- caused by travel restrictions arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Juniper analysts predict that an improvement in mobile roaming subscriber numbers will take until 2024 to exceed 2019 levels; reaching 918 million by 2024, as the international travel industry embarks on a prolonged recovery from the long-term impacts of the pandemic. The new market study finding...

The global enterprise IT modernization and migration to SaaS cloud computing platforms has been accelerated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, as more CIOs and CTOs adapt to the increased demand for flexible online working models that enable their knowledge worker employees to work from virtually anywhere. Clearly, IT infrastructure vendors directly benefited from this phenomenon. Vendor revenue from sales of IT infrastructure products for cloud environments -- including public and private cloud -- increased 9.4 percent year-over-year in the third quarter of 2020 (3Q20). However, investments in traditional, non-cloud, IT infrastructure declined -8.3 percent year-over-year, according to the latest worldwide market study by International Data Corporation ( IDC ). These growth rates demonstrate the market response to major adjustments in business, educational, and societal activities caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the role IT infrastructure plays in these adjustments. Across the globe...

The COVID-19 pandemic created many challenges within the enterprise, but it also generated technology application innovation. Augmented Reality (AR) has helped to fuel remote worker enablement, including high-value use cases such as remote assistance, training, and workflow instruction. Combine this with an increasingly viable consumer AR market over the next few years, the market growth potential is significant. ABI Research estimates that the worldwide augmented reality market will surpass $140 billion in total market value by 2025. "While enterprise usage has dominated the augmented reality conversation over the past few years, the tides are shifting. All of the tech companies that can shift markets on a global scale are directly involved in AR already, and many are planning more dedicated AR hardware efforts over the next two to three years," said Eric Abbruzzese, research director for ABI Research . Augmented Reality Market Development According to the ABI assessment, th...

Savvy CEOs are inspiring their executive leadership team to clearly articulate a 'Digital Workspace' strategy that will differentiate them from their peer group within the Global Networked Economy. Today, a compelling digital business growth agenda is a paramount goal for all forward-looking board of directors. As Chief Human Resource Officers (CHRO) continue to address the changes in disrupted business environments, as a result of the COVID-19 global pandemic, Gartner has identified five key 'future of work' decisions that the enterprise human resources (HR) team must address in 2021 and beyond. Major shifts in macroeconomic factors -- such as customer behaviors and government regulations -- and in micro factors -- including organizational strategy and policy -- have substantially shortened HR leaders’ time horizons when planning for the inevitable future commercial environment. Digital Workspace Market Development "2021 will be a year of not just recovery, but re...

Access to centralized cloud servers had led telecom network operators and their enterprise customers to assume that hyperscale public cloud service offerings would potentially enhance the storing and processing of all data being generated. However, performance issues arising from network latency translate into public cloud services being unsuitable for some data-intensive computing activities, such as analyzing complex data workloads and delivering real-time insights. Cloud edge computing, a form of distributed computing, where the device that collected the data, or an on-premises gateway, or an off-premises edge node close by, solves many problems associated with wide-area network latency. Cloud Edge Computing Market Development According to the latest worldwide market study by Juniper Research , the telecom network operator spend on Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) will grow from $2.7 billion in 2020 to reach $8.3 billion in 2025.  Multi-access edge computing (formerly mobile ed...