Digital Lifescapes

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...

How agile organizations enable online communication and collaboration for their distributed workforce is top of mind for most senior executives today. More savvy CEOs, across all industries, have rapidly increased investments in IT systems and services that empower employees to work from anywhere. The global unified communications & collaboration (UC&C) market grew 26.7 percent year-over-year and 6.6 percent quarter-over-quarter to $12.2 billion in the third quarter of 2020 (3Q20), according to the latest worldwide market study by International Data Corporation (IDC). As enterprise leaders moved their teams from the crisis phase to the recovery phase, in response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide growth of UC&C applications was driven by organizations across all business types and sizes. Unified Communications Market Development The IDC study uncovered a special interest in cloud-based solutions for voice, video, messaging, and collaboration for driving initiatives...

While forward-looking banks and other progressive financial service companies explore ways to develop new eCommerce offerings for online customers, there's still growing momentum within some legacy organizations to pursue an enhancement to traditional in-store payment technologies. Up to 2.5 million biometric payment cards will be issued in 2021 as the market reaps the benefits of significant ecosystem efforts, tailored specially to help reduce product cost, improve yield, and simplify manufacturing processes, according to the latest worldwide market study by ABI Research. Today over 20 biometric payment card pilots are active globally, and the first commercial launch, by BNP Paribas, was announced earlier in 2020. The biometric payment card is a form-factor to help enhance secure authentication, providing a new 'contactless' Point-of-Sale (POS) payment experience. Digital Payments Market Development "It’s taken time for the biometric payment card market to take shape ...

Enterprise CEOs are looking to their most senior technology leaders to deliver competitive digital business transformation projects that enable new revenue growth. Furthermore, they crave business technology champions that are skilled in motivating and developing IT talent for their top priorities. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to transform how CIOs manage, collaborate, and respond to their key stakeholders. Seventy percent of hiring processes for new CIOs rank individual determination and sensitivity as critical characteristics in 2021, according to the latest worldwide market study by Gartner. Digital Business Talent Development "CEOs are looking for executives who are capable of weathering crises," said Daniel Sanchez-Reina, senior research director at Gartner . "They are still unsettled about the future and want determined CIOs who make and implement timely decisions while displaying emotional dexterity to be tactful and supportive." Gartner says determination...

Where can you find the most value for your hard-earned money? Informed people everywhere seek the best consumer product purchase options via their mobile device and buy what they need with the expectation of reliable and fast delivery. This trend forces legacy retailers to shift their strategies and increase their digital presence and product availability. Moreover, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted the omni-channel retail laggards. Most retailers feel under pressure to offer streamlined shopping experiences and support omni-channel payments. The line between physical and digital commerce is becoming increasingly blurred. These key trends are truly transformational. Omnichannel Mobile Payments Market Development It's now forecast that mCommerce payments will reach $3.1 trillion in 2025 -- that's up from $2.1 trillion in 2020, according to the latest worldwide market study by Juniper Research. The analyst found that the pandemic’s massive boost to digital wal...

Across the globe, CEOs have learned that achieving digital growth requires an ongoing investment in their digital business transformation projects. Furthermore, legacy assumptions about the ways that enterprises should address business disruptions are no longer valid. Industry analysts believe superior 'change management' is about being resilient to market disruptions. International Data Corporation (IDC) has launched the Digital Resiliency Investment Index, which provides a view of the progress organizations are making in their investments towards digital resiliency. The initial Index results show that overall investments in resiliency have increased steadily throughout the year as businesses prioritize or accelerate the adoption of cloud computing, collaboration platforms, and other digital transformation projects. Digital Growth Resilience Market Development Modern IT infrastructure and network security have also been a major investment area, driven by the shift to more remo...

Commercial wireless communications have evolved rapidly over the last decade. Also, private cellular connectivity differs between enterprise verticals. Exploring the various applications and industry use cases provides an important indication of where infrastructure deployment will occur next. With fifth-generation (5G) wireless technology maturing, the importance of private networking solutions for the enterprise domain will continue to grow. Looking ahead, the growing demand for private network deployments will be driven primarily by heavy industry verticals. Industrial manufacturing, energy production (including mining, oil and gas, and logistics) alone will generate private network revenues of $32.38 billion by 2030, representing half of the $64 Billion overall private network revenues, according to the latest worldwide market study by ABI Research. Private 5G Network Market Development "These findings show the importance of private networks, particularly for automating missio...

CEOs agree, enabling 'remote working' options for their highly skilled talent is now essential to their digital growth goals. For many CHROs, supporting remote work is routine. HR leaders must cater to parts of their workforce that drive key growth initiatives, and deliver new human resource policies that are most beneficial. A survey of HR leaders has revealed that 90 percent of respondents plan to allow employees to work remotely at least part of the time, even after the COVID-19 pandemic vaccine is widely adopted. Furthermore, 65 percent of respondents reported that their organization will continue to offer employees flexibility on when and where they choose to work. That's a 'talent retention' imperative for 2021. Hybrid Work Infrastructure Market Development As the global distribution of various COVID-19 vaccines begin, HR leaders who responded to a recent Gartner survey predict that about 50 percent of their workforce may want to return to the workplace – at l...

The concept of a 'digital identity' is now established as a high priority, in an online world that's plagued with cybercriminals and others that profit from fraudulent activities. That said, digital identity is less about presenting a digital persona, and more about sharing verified identifiable data. A digital version of ‘you’ does have a place in the commercial ecosystems being built today. With the versatility inherent in many modern digital identity systems, life events and portable identities take on new meaning. Besides, there's a significant market opportunity for telecom service providers. According to the latest worldwide market study by Juniper Research, mobile network operator (MNO) revenue from digital identity will reach $8.1 billion in 2025 -- that's up from just $1.3 billion in 2020. Secure Digital Identity Market Development Juniper analysts found that, as the online identity space evolves, MNOs will play an increasingly important role in providing v...