Enterprises, not consumers, driving IoT

One billion: That's how many IoT (Internet of Things) devices will be shipped globally in 2015, according to Deloitte's 2015 TMT Predictions. The study predicts by 2015 one billion wireless IoT devices will be shipped, up 60 per cent from 2014, and leading to an installed base of 2.8 billion devices.

The IoT-specific hardware (which could be a more expensive cellular modem, or a much cheaper Wi-Fi chip) is likely to be worth $10 billion, and the associated services enabled by the devices worth about $70 billion. Services include all of the data plans that may be necessary to connect a device over a network, the professional services (consulting or analysing the data) and then things like an insurance policy discount for a telematics device in a car or a wearable device for health purposes.

IoT hardware and connectivity revenues are growing at about 10-20 per cent annually, while the apps, analytics and services are growing even more rapidly at 40-50 per cent.

Evens as a lot has been written about consumers controlling their thermostats, lights and appliances (from washing machines to tea kettles) through IOT, Deloitte predicts that 60 per cent of all wireless IoT devices will be bought, paid for and used by enterprises and industries, and 90 per cent of the services revenue will likewise be enterprise-driven.