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Gartner Says Context-Aware Technologies Will Affect $96 Billion of Annual Consumer Spending Worldwide by 2015

2011 – Context-aware technologies will affect $96 billion of annual consumer spending worldwide by 2015, according to Gartner, Inc. By that time, more than 15 per cent of all payment card transactions will be validated using context information.
Gartner analysts discussed the growing importance of context-aware computing at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2011, taking place in Orlando this week and in Barcelona on 7-10 November.
“Context-aware computing is the method by which new experiences are constructed that blend information from mobile, social, digital and physical world sources,” said William Clark, research vice president at Gartner. “The disruptions caused by context-aware computing will include major user, technology and business shifts, including the use of model-driven security in fraud detection and prevention, convergence in television, game, web and mobile advertising, and new styles of application programming. The advanced use of personal information in customising user experiences will result in the interest of governments in regulating contextual information access and control.”
Gartner estimates that by 2015, 40 per cent of the world-s smartphone users will opt-in to context service providers that track their activities. Given the overall smartphone base, this equates to about 720 million people or about 10 per cent of the global population. Payment card issuers and retailers currently hold important transactional information per person, and social platforms such as Facebook can provide some influence, but the ubiquity of the devices and the convenience of context-enriched services mean that although those providers are sources of context, they cannot deliver “the last contextual moment of choice.”
However, by 2015, smartphone adoption of iOS, Android, Windows Phone and other smartphone platforms will stand at more than 1.8 billion people. This collection of vendors already possess vast amounts of information about the digital habits, and by 2015, the intent of users will be combined with further enhancements of both indoor and outdoor 3D mapping databases. This will mean that context providers will be able to use location as a foundation to allow them to redefine how consumers search for and pay for products and services. This will present a new set of opportunities, and a change in the positioning of financial service providers, consumer packaged goods companies and retailers.
“Organisations can leverage context-aware computing to better target and deliver on the promise of increased customer intimacy for millions of consumers,” Mr Clark said. “For CIOs, the timing of investment in context-aware computing will be critical. Organisations that do not prepare for thoughtful information sharing – balancing usage, privacy and business models of consumers, context providers, and the organisations themselves, will be at a severe disadvantage. Organisations will need to coordinate in how context-enriched services will change their physical store, e-commerce and mobile-user experiences. Investing too heavily, too early will squander IT, marketing and operational resources.”
Transportation, utilities, energy and healthcare firms stand to gain considerable efficiency from context-aware computing, with notable use cases and case studies emanating from location and presence-enhanced apps.
“There is little doubt that context will be a defining principle of mobile business for the next decade, especially advertising and marketing,” said Mr Clark. “Context also will be a key criterion for the selection of partners and many mobile business systems will exploit contextual cloud services hosted by others, emerging as a major commercial battleground with powerful vendors, such as Nokia, Microsoft, Baidu, Amazon, Google and Apple, striving to own the consumer-s context.”
About Gartner Symposium/ITxpo
Gartner Symposium/ITxpo is the world-s most important gathering of CIOs and senior IT executives. This event delivers independent and objective content with the authority and weight of the world-s leading IT research and advisory organisation, and provides access to the latest solutions from key technology providers. Additional information for Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2011 in Barcelona, 7-10 November, is available at www.gartner.com/eu/symposium. To register for the event, please contact Laurence Goasduff at Gartner on + 44 (0) 1784 267 195 or at laurence.goasduff@gartner.com.
More exclusive content, expanding multimedia coverage, including Twitter feeds and comments from the Gartner Blog Network will be available at Gartner-s SymLive at www.gartner.com/us/symposium.
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Gartner, Inc. (NYSE: IT) is the world-s leading information technology research and advisory company. Gartner delivers the technology-related insight necessary for its clients to make the right decisions, every day. From CIOs and senior IT leaders in corporations and government agencies, to business leaders in high-tech and telecom enterprises and professional services firms, to technology investors, Gartner is a valuable partner to 60,000 clients in 11,500 distinct organizations. Through the resources of Gartner Research, Gartner Executive Programs, Gartner Consulting and Gartner Events, Gartner works with every client to research, analyze and interpret the business of IT within the context of their individual role. Founded in 1979, Gartner is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, USA, and has 4,500 associates, including 1,250 research analysts and consultants, and clients in 85 countries. For more information, visit www.gartner.com.