Internet of Things devices to triple by 2020

The number of internet-connected things will rise by 285 per cent between 2015 and 2020, from 13.4 billion to 38.5 billion.

While the British research house notes significant growth in the number of connected devices – it says there are already twice as many connected devices as there are people on the planet – it says that for most enterprises, simply connecting their systems and devices remains the first priority.

“We’re still at an early stage for IoT”, noted research author Steffen Sorrell. “Knowing what information to gather, and how to integrate that into back office systems remains a huge challenge”.

“This is due in no small part to a much stronger business case for these types of applications”, Juniper said.

According to Juniper, IoT represents a mix of devices and software connected via the internet that “produce, receive and analyse data”, which will be effective only if understood and used properly.

Additionally, interoperability hurdles owing to conflicting standards continues to slow progress.

The research underlined the importance of implementing the right systems to effectively deploy IoT strategy.

“In a statement, Philips executive Liat Ben-Zur explained that as healthcare moves into the private home, “[a]ddressing the needs of personal health requires a new perspective and innovative technologies like the AllJoyn software framework”, adding that “Philips also values the potential of collaborative partnerships to advance markets and improve consumer experiences forever”.

It is likely, that the industrial sector – composed of retail, connected buildings and agriculture – will enable high ROI on IoT projects, owing to more efficient business processes.

Brands and marketers are expected to tap into this network of connected things using that data being aggregated and analyzed to deliver more pertinent messaging.

Cisco became the latest company to throw its hat into the IoT ring with a new system released last month aimed at smart city infrastructure.