Will 2017 Finally be the Year of Internet of Things? An Overview of IoT Predictions

Predictions like turron in Spain come back for Christmas.

Good Bye 2016

We can say that 2016 was an even bigger year for Internet of Things, something that is not particularly special. The year brought good Internet of Things stories, and news, but we are far from reaching the expectations.

If you want to know if the 2016 predictions were true or the authors make some corrections during the year, I suggest that you read my last year post and comments Quo Vadis IoT in 2016 or do not you think that we need more accurate predictions?.

My two cents about 2016 IoT predictions:

• I believe that Gartner failed and the IoT industry did not explode in 2016.
• I did not see that Millennials accelerated the Internet of Things as IDC predicted.
• 2016 was neither the critical year for defining the LPWA networks and connectivity that Machina Research, now part of Gartner, anticipated. 
• Sorry Vodafone, IoT has not been vital to the customer experience.
• Large  companies such as Cisco Systems, Dell Technologies, Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Intel are making deep investments in IoT products, new startups such as Samsara, Monnit and others are doubling down on the space as well.
• The barriers for IoT adoption have been many and well known. IoT not yet ready for mass deployment, says IDTechEx. Benchmarking study concludes that many pre-requisites for mass adoption of the Internet of Things are not yet in place and market will scale up at a slower rate than predicted.

But enough of sticking to the good of the IoT wizards. Let’s review what the fortune tellers say is waiting for us in 2017.

What will be of IoT in 2017?

First things first, here are some of the links with the predictions for 2017 that I’ve collected so far.

Morgan Stanley – 2017 The Year Of Internet Of Things We are at an inflection point for the development and adoption of IoT technology, thats the main takeaway from a new report on the Internet of Thing industry from Morgan Stanley published last week. The IoT market has moved on significantly over the past 12 months. This time last year, there was much hype surrounding the technology, although many speculated it would be years before the public widely adapted IoT devices. However, per Morgan Stanleys research, almost the entire semiconductor industry is preparing for the manufacturing and introduction of IoT devices and related hardware to the market.

Forrester – Internet Of Things (IoT): 2017 Predictions – Most worrying is that there will be a large-scale IoT security breach.

IDC – Worldwide Internet of Things 2017 Predictions –  Some of the topics raised in this year’s IDC FutureScape are:

• Open data platforms and their implications on current IoT deployments
• Low-power wireless access networks and whether they are an adequate connectivity method
• Systems integrators and their increasing importance in IoT projects
• Key industries expected to drive IoT growth

Analysys Mason –  Expectations for IoT in 2017: key developments in LPWA technologies, connected cars and smart cities .

Compass Intelligence What to watch in IoT in 2017

MachNation – Internet of Things platform revenue will grow 116% in 2017

Sandhill – IoTs adolescence: five predictions for 2017  – Ecosystems begin to determine winners and losers. Choose your platform.

Forbes – 2017 Predictions For AI, Big Data, IoT, Cybersecurity, And Jobs From Senior Tech Executives. The Internet of Things (IoT) is still a popular buzzword, but adoption will continue to be slow, predicts Prat Moghe, founder and CEO, Cazena. Analyzing data from IoT and sensors clearly has the potential for massive impact, but most companies are far (FAR!) from ready. IoT will continue to get lots of lip service, but actual deployments will remain low. Complexity will continue to plague early adopters that find it a major challenge to integrate that many moving parts. Companies will instead focus resources on other low-hanging fruit data and analytics projects first.

Internet of Things Institute – 11 IoT Predictions for 2017  – Prediction 3: Recruiting Will Remain a Challenge for Organizations with IoT Initiatives. Is this really a prediction? In 2017, we will see a growing number of consumer-facing connected products that use connectivity to solve real problems. And more predictions in the same area on What’s in Store for IoT Security in 2017

Business Marketing Association – 2017 Internet of Things Predictions

• The big data floodgates open, driven by the appetite for deeper contextual insights that drive customer engagement via mobile and wearables;
• Investment in artificial intelligence will triple as firms look to tap complex systems, advanced analytics and machine learning technology;
• CEOs will ‘exit’ at least 30% of chief marketing officers for not mustering the blended skill set needed to drive digital business transformation, design exceptional personalize experiences and propel growth;
• There will be a doubling of business-head turnover as CEOs come to terms with what’s needed to propel their company forward in a customer-led, digital-centric business
• There also are some downsides predicted for next year. For example, a Fortune 1000 company will fail because of a cyber breach, more than 500,000 IoT devices will be compromised and national security risks will drive agencies to expand surveillance technologies, creating legal and ethical conflicts between governments and people.

Bosch – Industry 4.0 and the IoT market trends for the next years – The top trending topics over the coming years will be:

• Trend #1: Industry 4.0 / IoT killer apps
• Trend #2: Power to the Industry 4.0 / IoT user
• Trend #3: Standardize Industry 4.0 / IoT complete solutions
• Trend #4: Industry 4.0 manufacturing
• Trend #5: IoT platforms
• Trend #7: Users become Industry 4.0 / IoT vendors
• Trend #8: IoT Ecosystems

Schneider Electric – The Future of IoT: Our 5 Predictions  –  Nothing specific for 2017, only good intentions.

Teradata – 10 predictions for the Internet of Things and big data in 2017

• The Internet of Things and big data technologies have progressed enormously in 2016 and 2017 is set to be a year when more enterprise use cases come to fruition. We will see more augmented reality-based products and greater consolidation in the IoT market. 2017 will be a team-building year.
• The Internet of Things architect role will eclipse the data scientist as the most valuable unicorn for HR departments. The surge in IoT will produce a surge in edge computing and IoT operational design. Thousands of resumes will be updated overnight.
• Additionally, fewer than 10% of companies realize they need an IoT analytics architect, a distinct species from IoT System Architect. Software architects who can design both distributed and central analytics for IoT will soar in value. – Dan Graham, Internet of Things technical marketing specialist, Teradata

Ericsson – 10 hot consumer trends 2017 – Trend 2. Setting the pace for Internet of Things:

Smartphones may also be key to IoT beyond the remote control paradigm. As two in five advanced internet users believe their phones will soon learn what we do and perform activities for us automatically, smartphones could soon interact with a wealth of other devices on our behalf.

HPE – Industry Experts Top IoT Predictions for 2017 and Beyond  –

• In 2017, IT leaders will look to take the next important step in IoTautomating the on boarding and security processes for all devices needing network access (whether they are IoT, BYOD or guest devices) to provide a better user experience while safeguarding network security (Alan Ni, Director of Vertical Marketing, Aruba (an HPE company).
• IoT architectures will continue to push data analytics to the devices whenever possible, greatly reducing the amount of data sent upstream and minimizing the load on the network infrastructure. (Mike Krell, Lead IoT Analyst, Moor Insights & Strategy).

Engerati –  T&D Predictions for 2017 IoT – Engerati has set out three areas where the sector will see real change in 2017;

• Digital Workforce – Autonomy and Augmented Reality
• Asset Management – Grid Resilience and Situational Awareness
• The Grid Edge – Prosumers and Behind the Meter Analytics

Pentaho – IoT systems will evolve in 2017 to help businesses prosper during uncertain times in five ways: Self-service data prep will unlock big datas full value; organizations will replace self-service reporting with embedded analytics; IoTs adoption and convergence with big data will make automated data on boarding a requirement; – Quentin Gallivan, CEO of Pentaho

Capterra –  What is Customer Service in 2017? Part 1: Internet of Things – TechRadar reported that by 2017 global investment in IoT will hit $7.3 trillion.

Sofia2  Blog – 2017 IoT Predictions: More Innovation, More Large-Scale Security Breaches  Another post regarding Forrester IoT Predictions.

Report Linker – Internet of Things (IoT) 2017-2027 -For those who can afford to buy this report. We do not repeat the mantra about tens of billions of nodes being deployed in only a few years. The many analysts sticking to such euphoria ignore the fact that, contrary to their expectation, very little IoT was deployed in 2016. They are “bubble pushing” with their forecasts, predicting ever steeper take off, now a physical impossibility.

IoT Security predictions

• IoT-Related Data Breaches Will Cause Havoc
• CIO  Magazine –  Security IoT Predictions
• PYMNTS – Cybersecurity Predictions For 2017 In The IoT – The industrial IoT will also become more vulnerable to cyberattacks in 2017 as its informational and operational technologies continue to converge.
• 2017 prediction time: first, cyber security trends everything from toy drones to routers will come under government cyber security scrutiny and require manufacturers to tighten security.
• Internet of Things attacks will make top security headlines in 2017 – The major emerging threat for 2017 is the botnet made up of not-so-smart things
• Threats against SCADA systems will also become more widespread, as SCADA providers continue to move towards TCP/IP as protocol of choice within their networks and the decreasing cost of chips leads to ever smarter (and thus easier to exploit) industrial process controllers and sensors.
• Targeted attacks, possibly targeting corporations public cloud presence, will also be on the increase in 2017, as threat actors ranging from nation states to industrial espionage outfits to activist NGOs will seek to exploit the security weaknesses in organizations.
• Darknets and the associated markets in illegal materials and services (cyber-crime tools included) represent an emergent problem, which will probably rise again to mainstream attention during 2017 . The highly successful (and thus highly centralized) Silk Road market has been crushed by law enforcement, but a myriad TOR-ified or otherwise hidden specialized markets have sprouted in its stead, and are expected to continue growing to the point of becoming again a global problem.

Other IoT predictions

• 7 IoT Leaders to Watch in 2017
• IoT Predictions: Voice Assistants, Smart Home Cameras Take Off
• Five ways IoT will change the way we communicate in 2017 and beyond
• Ask the Futurists: 10 Bold Predictions for 2030 – Which up-and-coming IoT companies will make the biggest splash next year? The sentence that I like more in this article is:
• In the future, well be able to better predict the future.
• 25 incredible internet of things European start-ups to watch in 2017 Consumer IoT continues attracting the money of investors.
• The Top 8 Predictions for IoT in 2017 by Stephen Mraz, A Skeptical Engineer

Top 10 IoT 2017 wishes from my side

For the first time, I will dare to write not my own predictions, but my wishes. Here they go:

1. The End of the free IoT of Pilots and PoCs.  After years of abuse, IoT Consultants and IoT vendors do not accept to implement free Pilots/Proof of Concepts.
2. For the first time, the number of IoT platforms will shrink and some key vendors will offer a Cloud/Edge application enablement. In 2017 many IoT platform vendors will work on exit strategies.
3. We will continue to live in a world of IoT Subnets, but IoT Gateway vendors will design equipment to easily integrate LoRA, NB-IoT, SigFox,  Ingenu and 3G networks.
4. Alarming Increment of attacks and new IoT threats will make Governments finally to act. Hackers are so excited about demonstrating IoT vulnerabilities that they will attack all kinds of connected systems and products.
5. Machines will design the new protocol for M2M using Machine Learning algorithms –The protocol will become the standard in 10 years.
6. Disillusionment with Connected Car, the Driverless Cars and Smart Homes will continue in 2017. Lack of standards and network infrastructure and we cannot forget that most people like to drive.
7. We will read some success stories about how wearables and augmented / virtual reality positively affect productivity and healthcare.
8. Growth of the Internet of Things and Robots in digital marketing.
9. Small and Medium Enterprises will begin to adopt simple IoT solutions
10. Mergers and Acquisitions in IoT will continue, the interest will be in companies with vertical industry knowledge/ references and less in technology.

I know I left a lot of wishes, but I cannot overcharge Santa Claus. Merry Christmas.

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Thoughts? Comments?