In 2009 there were about 10¹⁹ transistors shipped in 2009, or over 1 billion per person.  It is estimated that the  number of smartphones, tablets and PCs in use will reach about 7.3 billion units in 2020.  It is projected that component costs will become so inexpensive that connectivity will become a standard feature even for devices costing less than $1.

According to a Gartner report, the Internet of Things (IoT) which Gartner defines as the “network of physical objects that contain embedded technology to communicate and sense or interact with their internal states or the external environment” and which excludes PCs, tablets and smartphones,  will expand to 26 billion units installed by 2020 up significantly from 0.9 billion in 2009. 

According to Gartner the IoT includes the devices (hardware), embedded software, communications services and information services such as geolocation associated with the things. Gartner refers to the companies that provide the hardware, software and services as IoT suppliers.   Gartner said that IoT product and service suppliers will generate incremental revenue of about $309 billion, mostly in services. 

The economic value-add which represents the aggregate benefits that businesses derive through the sale and usage of IoT will reach $1.9 trillion across all sectors in 2020.  The verticals that are leading the adoption of IoT are manufacturing (15 %), healthcare (15 %) and insurance (11 %).  The IoT includes sector-specific technology such as automated manufacturing systems and more generic technology such as “smart building” technologies.

A recent study by Cisco of the Internet of Things (Cisco calls it the Internet of Everything) estimated that it represents a $19 trillion global opportunity over the next decade.

Standards for the Internet of Things

Geospatial information is a cross-cutting requirement of many intelligent devices participating inthe IoT.  The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC, which creates and manages standards that enable geospatial interoperability, and the International Telecommunications Union Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T) are jointly collaborating on the advancement of standards for the Internet of Things (IoT).  As part of this effort the OGC has submitted the OGC Open GeoSMS standard for adoption through the ITU.  In addition the ITU-T has just published a ITU-T Technology Watch Report: Location matters: Spatial standards for the Internet of Things, written by staff and members of the OGC in collaboration with the ITU Secretariat.