IoT boom signals possible network capacity overload: IDC
IDC is consistently bullish about the future of the Internet of Things, and its latest set of 2015 predictions is no different.
As part of its FutureScape prediction series for 2015, IDC looked at the impending IoT space from a broad spectrum of angles, including network capacity, security, cloud and the impact of Millennials.
First, the bad news. IDC says that within three years, half of IT networks will go from having a network capacity surplus to being network constrained, and 10 percent of sites will be overwhelmed. By 2018, most of the action for 40 percent of IoT-created data will take place close to, or at the edge, of the network.
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As for security, IDC predicts a bit of a headache for CIOs and CISOs, considering that about 90 percent of all IT networks will have an IoT-based security breach within two years. On the bright side, not all breaches will result in crisis, rather an inconvenience, IDC says.
On the cloud front, IDC expects that within five years, 90 percent of all IoT data will be hosted on cloud service provider platforms. The benefit to this would be the ability to blend IoT data with less complexity.
IDC also expects to see not only a rise in the number of supposed smart cities (with an estimated 25 percent of all government external spending to go toward IoT by 2018), but also a diversification away from that vertical. As of now, things like smart cities, manufacturing and consumer applications make up the bulk of IoT focus, but IDC sees that evolving to include nearly all industries within five years.
And in the "no surprise there" category, IDC expects Millennials to play a pretty big role in the acceleration of IoT adoption, especially considering that 16 percent of the population will be comprised of the Gen Y age group by 2018.
"The Internet of Things will give IT managers a lot to think about," said Vernon Turner, SVP of Research at IDC. "Enterprises will have to address every IT discipline to effectively balance the deluge of data from devices that are to the corporate network. In addition, IoT will drive tough organizational structure changes in companies to allow innovation to be transparent to everyone, while creating new competitive business models and products."