Last week we wrote about a number of companies set to benefit from one of the massive trends likely to transform our lives in future years – the Internet of Things (IoT).
Today, global networking giant Cisco has released its annual Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast for 2014 to 2019 report. In it, the company says, "the ongoing adoption of more powerful mobile devices and machine-to-machine (M2M) connections combined with broader access to faster cellular networks are key contributors to significant mobile traffic growth."
Cisco also notes that the worldwide shift from basic feature phones to smartphones, growing usage of tablets and expanding M2M applications means more 'smart' traffic. Total mobile traffic is expected to rise 10-fold from 2014 to 2019, or at a compound rate of 57% each year.
Mobile traffic is forecast to reach 292 exabytes by 2019 – the equivalent of 6 trillion video clips, 65 trillion images and 292 times more traffic than all fixed and mobile data generated in the whole of 2000.
By 2019, there will be 5.2 billion people using mobile phones – more than 69% of the world's total population. The number of wearable devices, such as watches and cameras, will grow from 109 million last year to more than 578 million in 2019. These wearable devices already generate 6 times more traffic than a basic mobile phone.
The Asia Pacific region is expected to generate the most mobile data traffic – more than double North America and nearly four times that of Europe.
Those are some amazing statistics – and if correct – clearly a massive tailwind for the five tech stocks we mentioned and a couple more that weren't on the list.
It's hard to go past Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) for its dominance in Australia, not just of mobile communications, but its fixed broadband network, infrastructure, and desire to expand into Asia.
MGM Wireless Limited (ASX: MWR) – a company that provides schools with the technology to message both parents and students via SMS. MGM now has more than 1,000 schools using its technology. While only tiny, MGM has seen its shares surge more than 20% today, after upgrading its net profit forecast for the first half of 2015 financial year.
Speedcast International Ltd (ASX: SDA) – which provides satellite communications to remote locations such as deep-sea oil rigs, ocean going vessels and mining camps in the middle of nowhere. With the demand for data expected to rise, Speedcast should see steady demand for its products and services. You can find out more about Speedcast here.
