E-Business
Top 10 Predictions for IT in 2014
International Data Corporation (IDC) during the week offered the first of its annual predictions for the coming year in the information and communications technology (ICT) industry.
IDC’s predictions for 2014 were heavily influenced by the 3rd Platform, the industry’s emerging platform for growth and innovation built on the technology pillars of mobile computing, cloud services, big data and analytics, and social networking.
DC’s predictions for 2014, presented by Gens in a Web conference, include the following:
Worldwide IT spending will grow 5% year over year to $2.1 trillion in 2014. Spending will be driven by 3rd Platform technologies, which will grow 15% year over year and capture 89% of IT spending growth. Sales of smartphones and tablets will continue at a torrid pace while outlays for servers, storage, networks, software, and services will fare better than in 2013. The PC market will remain under stress, with worldwide revenues down -6% year over year.
Emerging markets will return to double-digit growth of 10%, driving nearly $740 billion or 35% of worldwide IT revenues and, for the first time, more than 60% of worldwide IT spending growth. In the BRIC countries, IT spending will grow by 13% year over year, led by an economic recovery in China.
In dollar terms, China’s IT spending growth will match that of the United States, even though the Chinese market is only one third the size of the U.S. market. Elsewhere, emerging market growth will be uneven, ushering in the beginning of a new “Post-BRIC” era.
Within the 3rd Platform, value will start to migrate “up the stack”, from infrastructure as a service (IaaS) to platform as a service (PaaS) and from generic PaaS to data-optimized PaaS.
The latter will be most evident as Amazon Web Services rolls out an avalanche of platform-as-a-service offerings for developers and higher value services for businesses.
This will force incumbent IT suppliers – the companies that won market leadership in the 2nd Platform era – to urgently reconfigure themselves to fight for position in the 3rd Platform marketplace.
Joining them in the fight will be Google, which will realize it is at risk of being boxed out of a market where it should be vying for leadership.
The mobile device onslaught will continue in 2014 with sales of tablets growing by 18% and smartphones by 12%.
The Android community, led by Samsung, will maintain its volume advantage over Apple, while Apple will hold onto its value edge with higher average selling prices and an established ecosystem of apps.
But Google Play (Android) app downloads and revenues are making dramatic gains and the “app ecosystem value gap” will be significantly narrowed in 2014.
And the clock will be ticking louder for Microsoft, which needs to quickly double mobile developer interest in Windows.
Cloud spending, including cloud services and the technology to enable these services, will surge by 25% in 2014, reaching over $100 billion.
IDC expects to see a dramatic increase in the number of datacenters as cloud players race to achieve global scale.
This will be accompanied by a similar expansion in the variety of workload-specialized cloud infrastructure services, leading to new forms of differentiation among cloud service providers.
Finally, a pitched battle will be joined for the developers that can create the cloud-based applications and solutions that will fuel the market’s growth.
Spending on big data technologies and services will grow by 30% in 2014, surpassing $14 billion as demand for big data analytics skills continues to outstrip supply. Here the race will be on to develop “data-optimized cloud platforms”, capable of leveraging high volumes of data and/or real-time data streams. Value-added content providers and data brokers will proliferate as enterprises (and developers) look for interesting data sources as well as applications that help them to understand their customers, products, and the markets in which they exist.
Social technologies will become increasingly integrated into existing enterprise applications over the next 12-18 months. In addition to being a strategic component in virtually all customer engagement and marketing strategies, data from social applications will feed the product and service development process. IDC expects enterprise social networks will become increasingly available as standard offerings from cloud services providers.
This will enable enterprises to further embed social into the workflow, rather than having a separate “social layer.”
Datacenters represent the physical foundation underneath the cloud, and are thus a crucial component of the 3rd Platform.
As cloud-dedicated datacenters grow in number and importance, the market for server, storage, and networking components will increasingly be driven by cloud service providers, who have traditionally favored highly componentized and commoditized designs.
The incumbent IT hardware vendors, who have struggled to sell into this market, will be forced to adopt a “cloud-first” strategy, designing new innovations for initial release and widespread adoption in cloud service provider datacenters.
The 3rd Platform will deliver the next generation of competitive advantage apps and services that will significantly disrupt market leaders in virtually every industry.
A key to competing in these disrupted and reinvented industries will be to create industry-focused innovation platforms (like GE’s Predix) that attract and enable large communities of innovators – dozens to hundreds will emerge in the next several years.
IDC predicts that most of these industry platform players will not reinvent the cloud underpinnings they need, but will build on top Amazon, Microsoft, IBM, Salesforce, and others’ platforms. In 2014, it will be critically important for these IT leaders to find these emerging industry platform players and win their business.
Finally, the 3rd Platform will continue to expand beyond smartphones, tablets, and PCs in 2014 to the Internet of Things (IoT).
With IoT momentum building in 2014, IDC expects to see new industry partnerships to emerge as traditional IT vendors accelerate their partnerships with global telecom service providers and semiconductor vendors to create integrated offerings in the consumer electronics and connected device spaces. This kind of collaboration and coordination will be necessary to reach the 30 billion autonomously connected end points and $8.9 trillion in revenues that IDC believes the IoT will generate by 2020.
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Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Mastercard to enhance data protection in Nigeria.
Dr. Vincent Olatunji, commissioner, NDPC and Derek Ho,deputy chief privacy officer, Mastercard
The agreement was sealed during a workshop where 150 Data Protection Officers (DPOs) were trained on Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs).
Dr. Vincent Olatunji, commissioner, NDPC, said the event kicks off activities for the 8th NADPA conference, highlighting government efforts to train more certified DPOs.
Olatunji also disclosed the Federal Government’s commitment to increasing the number of certified DPOs with the required skills to manage data protection.
He noted that Nigeria’s digital-savvy youth are key to driving this agenda.
“Human capital is really key to us, and the ecosystem we are regulating is very special. It is still new, still emerging, and we need all we can to build the capacity of officers.
“We want to build the capacity of our people so we can be able to deliver on our mandate and fully deepen privacy in Nigeria.
“We are targeting to build the capacity of 250,000 DPOs annually, and we are working with partners like Mastercard to achieve that,” he said.
Derek Ho,deputy chief privacy officer, Mastercard, also stressed the need for collaboration to build trust in the digital economy and urged participants to embrace training as data protection keeps evolving.
Central Securities Clearing System PLC (CSCS) has announced the launch of *7270#, its Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) code service, set to go live on May 8th, 2025.
The USSD code service is an innovative solution designed to enhance the ease and accessibility of investment services for all users.
Also, this service leverages the network capabilities of MTN Nigeria to bring unparalleled convenience to investors.
Driven by a relentless commitment to innovation, CSCS aims to revolutionize information access within the Nigerian capital market through this USSD code service.
As the Central Securities Depository (CSD), CSCS focuses on enhancing investor experiences and providing deeper market insights with unparalleled convenience.
The CSCS USSD code service offers seamless access to essential market information directly from mobile phones, eliminating the need for internet connectivity or specialized trading platforms.
Investors can now effortlessly retrieve Clearing House Number (CHN), check Direct Cash Settlement (DCS) status, view stock positions, account balances, and account status confirmations.
Haruna Jalo-Waziri, managing director/chief executive officer of CSCS, said ” We are excited to launch the *7270# USSD code service, a significant step in leveraging mobile technology to democratize access to account and portfolio information.
“This service empowers every investor, regardless of their location or resources, to stay informed about their investments. At CSCS, we believe that financial inclusivity is key to driving economic growth.
“Our partnership with MTN Nigeria on this project represents a significant leap toward a more inclusive financial landscape, leveraging the spread of the MTN network.
“This collaboration enhances the investing experience, reinforcing our shared commitment to empowering individuals with the tools they need to manage their financial futures effectively.” he added.
The CSCS USSD code service will initially be available to MTN users only. However, CSCS plans to expand this service to other networks soon.
This innovative service offers investors streamlined and secure access to critical market information at their fingertips.
Aisha Umar Mumuni, chief digital officer of MTN Nigeria, said, “This collaboration with CSCS on the *7270# USSD service underscores MTN’s commitment to harnessing the power of mobile technology to simplify complex processes for our users.
“By making critical investment information available at the touch of a button, we are helping to democratize access to the capital markets and, in the process, enhance investor engagement and market transparency,” she said.
CSCS continues to lead the way in technological advancements, reinforcing its position as a pivotal player in the Nigerian capital market ecosystem.
This initiative underscores our dedication to enhancing market efficiency and empowering investors with the tools they need for informed decision-making.
The need to maximise local digital assets, amid dwindling Oil revenues and a struggling economy, has been reiterated by the Chief Executive Officer of Quomodo Systems Africa, Oluwole Asalu, who maintained this measure remains the path to prosperity.
Asalu, while addressing the press in Lagos, recently asserted that global shift towards digital economies, presents a pivotal opportunity for Nigeria at this time to mobilise sufficient resources towards effective governance.
He emphasised harnessing the burgeoning local digital economy to expedite national diversification goals, while break away from overdependence on oil output.
Asalu, boasted further that Nigeria’s tech-savvy, youthful population and increasing recognition from global tech giants already position its digital sector as a driver of inclusive growth and job creation.
“Nigeria’s overreliance on oil is no longer tenable. As global markets shift towards renewable energy, the urgency to diversify has never been greater. Technology stands out as the most promising avenue, not merely as a sector, but as an enabler of growth across all facets of the economy,” he explained.
According to him, Nigeria’s tech talent remains the new oil, a renewable resource with the potential for significant returns, if strategically harnessed.
Like India’s successes in information technology services, Asalu want Nigeria to tap into lucrative outsourcing industry to draw foreign investment.
“Foreign investment in Nigeria’s tech sector is rising. Programmes like Digital Explorers have led European firms such as Telesoft to establish operations in Nigeria. Tech giants like Microsoft and Facebook have followed suit, injecting capital and creating jobs,” he stated.
He again pointed to the emergence of three unicorns within Nigeria’s tech ecosystem as a breakthrough and sign of maturity.
“Nigeria’s tech ecosystem is already showing signs of maturity, with three unicorns emerging from its soil. These success stories, powered by local innovation, underscore the viability of a home-grown, world-class tech sector,” he affirmed.
He however emphasized urgent need to close existing gap in skills and infrastructure, in addition to embracing governance and collaboration to fully harness digital potential cum future.
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