Smart cities key to M2M

Smart cities represent the most beneficial outcome of machine to machine (M2M) technology, according to a survey of IT decision makers. The majority of respondents also believe that firms that fail to implement M2M technologies will fall behind competition.

A survey carried out by Harris Interactive on behalf of software firm SAP found that almost 30 percent of IT decision makers believe smart cities will be the most important outcome of the deployment of M2M technologies. The ability to increase mobility across the workforce was perceived as another big opportunity for M2M in the workplace.

The study, which surveyed respondents across Brazil, Germany, India, US, UK and China, also revealed a common view that firms failing to embrace the M2M movement will fall behind competition. This is because M2M technology can give companies greater insight into their business, according to the majority of respondents in China (96 per cent), India (88 per cent) and Brazil (86 per cent). The second most important benefit identified was that M2M enables businesses to respond to real world events.

Increased efficiency, productivity, employee collaboration and mobility represented the largest opportunities for M2M in the workplace, according to respondents. IT decision makers from all six countries were also insistent that the availability of network infrastructure, such as LTE services, will be instrumental in allowing M2M technologies to flourish in the future.

“The benefits of M2M are undeniable but there are barriers toward the adoption of M2M solutions, such as the lack of complete multi-industry offerings, management, security and big data issues, and deficiency of suitable global connectivity solutions that are needed by multinational enterprises,” said Sanjay Poonen, president of technology solutions and mobile division at SAP.