Instead of a detailed description of trends in information and digital technologies, we can only refer to one forecast: in just a couple of years, this market will own more than half of the world's GDP. Never before has any branch of human activity developed so rapidly and had such an impact on human life as a whole.
Who influences whom
The cliché “the world is changing at a cosmic pace” has been steadfastly held in business reviews for exactly as many years as new digital technologies exist. It turns out that the future of humanity depends on gadgets, startups, digitalization, artificial intelligence and everything else?
Not everyone gets comfortable with this kind of speculation. Therefore, we will not delve into the philosophy of "digital being", but will deal with the current situation in the information market. Anything related to the two letters IT is always extremely interesting. This kind of information must be carefully monitored, otherwise there is a riskhopelessly out of touch with life. Unfortunately, with the same rapid speed…
Characteristics of the information technology market
The IT industry is highly volatile, so it's hard to talk about established development directions. Nevertheless, the structure of the information market can be conditionally divided into the following segments:
- programming products;
- hardware or computer equipment;
- Various IT services;
- communication and communication equipment.
The IT market can be structured by industry. There is, perhaps, no area of human affairs where digital technologies would not be applied. Therefore, such a classification of the IT market would simply turn into a long list of human activities. Therefore, it is better to “walk through” some episodes of the development of an unusually lively and changeable phenomenon under the acronym IT.
Forecasts, fantasy and fakes
Analysis of trends and forecasts of the development of the global information market is the favorite business of consultants, ministers, professors, etc. This is a simple and safe way to turn in front of an astonished audience into an advanced expert who knows more than mere mortals.
What the Web is full of is IT forecasts of all sorts: from real expensive research with scientific forecasting to shocking tales about what miracles are happening in Silicon Valley. This is how strange stories from high stands are formed that cows will soon cease to be needed, as an extra intermediary between grass andbeef because everything is 3D printed.
There is only one way to filter fakes and recognize real and useful information: choose serious expert sources. These include, for example, Gartner and Forrester. These are research companies engaged in monitoring, analyzing the information market at the most serious and professional world level.
Characterization of the IT market in terms of forecasts
The top piece of advice from trusted experts in an average and maximally universal way is as follows: if you have not yet invested in new IT technologies, do it as soon as possible.
Now forecasts of events in the market of information resources and services for the near future, through 2020 inclusive:
- Imbalance in sales of two types of services: on the one hand, the demand for cloud services will increase significantly. On the other hand, this increase will lead to the failure of sales of customary local software solutions. Therefore, the growth of the market for these types of services may be unstable.
- Heterogeneous structure of the information market: uneven growth in sales of IT services and equipment in different countries. If, for example, in China, the USA or Sweden it increases by no less than 4%, then the vast markets of such countries as Russia or Brazil will not show high dynamics. The reason for this is the unfavorable economic conditions observed in this period.
- Significant increase in demand (more than 60%) for new servers due to the expansion of the AI market.
Blockchain technology is, of course, an important trend. Together with artificial intelligence and cloud IT solutions, it is included in the “shock” group of the most promising examples of the information market in the coming years. However, some companies prefer to “wait a bit” with IT investments, given some political nuances in global markets in general.
Digital technologies for banks
The banking industry is perhaps the most capacious and grateful sector of the economy, the existence of which would be impossible without modern IT services. Advanced banking structures were the first to understand that new client technologies would "save the banking world." And everything new in the bank is possible only with IT. Bankers are waiting for technological discoveries, new solutions and their attendant problems (where without them):
- Cloud service will become the main tool for banking customer service to replace traditional systems with subscriptions. Transaction systems on new cloud platforms will become much more advanced. But these changes will raise the issue of cybersecurity to a new, higher level, which will have to be worked hard on.
- Blockchain as a technology will find the widest application in the payment system, especially in a cross-border format.
- The scope of banking services will expand significantly by creating and offering customers individual credit, financial andinvestment decisions that will be formed through big data analysis and new predictive analytics.
- Internet of Things (IoT) technologies will also lead to new types of payments.
Information market for manufacturing
If we talk about the manufacturing industry, here the priority interest and prospects are concentrated mainly on the capabilities of artificial intelligence. It is this technology that will become the most dynamic sector with growth up to 70%.
Compared to the banking technological breakthrough in IT, industrial business can be called perhaps the most conservative in this regard. The following drivers can be identified in the manufacturing information market:
- Integration of IT solutions in the chain of production processes. Optimization of business processes with increasing their efficiency and transparency.
- Shaping complete IT landscapes with IT application consolidation.
- Technological IT solutions for next generation analytics - real-time process.
- Integrating not only individual business processes, but the entire product life cycle
Russian market of hackers and hackers
Numerous computer crimes have been collectively referred to as cybercrime. The fight against it is also acquiring new formats and principles. This is now called the Cybercrime Solutions Ecosystem: Predict and Prevent.
Fraud. Crime. Hackers. Carding. Phishing. DDos attacks… Constantly and around the clock on a global scaleeducated skilled people steal money and secrets. The Russian market sector has become truly international. It is quite specific: Russian criminals are well organized, courageous and technologically competent.
It's no surprise that the best hunters of hackers and other violators of the Russian sourdough will be Russian professionals. So it is: Russian cybersecurity companies are highly rated in the global information market. Recently, a new type of service has appeared - cyber intelligence (Threat Intelligence) with its tactical, operational and strategic combat missions. The world is changing here too…
IT market for retail
And interesting events are unfolding in this sector. Retailers, including Russian ones, are investing in new sales channels related to the so-called omnichannel trade. It's about the customer choosing the best way to buy: online or offline with the same price of the goods.
Various mobile applications from trading companies are moving away from the practice of banal and boring mailing of information about promotions and discounts. Today's applications are focused on creating customized offers using big data and other analytical tools.
Customer loy alty is valued more and more, so another area of IT development has become a variety of systems for accumulating loy alty points, taking into account the personalities of regular customers, up to age, gender and geography of residence.
Amazing Predictions
One cannot fail to mention medicine, which is seeing fantastic technological IT breakthroughs in everything from surgical operations to the production of new pharmacological agents.
For example, by 2023, emergency medical visits in developed countries will be reduced by almost half thanks to the new virtual online chronic care. In this case, artificial intelligence will become the basic technology. Let's be honest, this forecast does not apply to Russia.
In the field of general security, there are also a huge number of achievements and even more prospects for the future. After all, except for cybercrime, no one has yet canceled ordinary crime. But life is already much more difficult for lawbreakers with the latest integrated video surveillance and multi-level audio monitoring systems.
The latest versions of facial recognition systems are used even in the transport sector: for example, at international airports. The search for missing persons, stolen goods, illegally exported animals or false documents: for the information market, this is nothing more than integrated border services. Security, transportation, logistics - it all becomes much more efficient and safer.
Features of the Russian IT market
Unfortunately, the Russian market of information resources lags far behind the markets in developed countries (this does not apply to cybersecurity services). There are practically no purely Russian products on the IT market. Domestic IT companies surprisinglyare satisfied with their secondary role in the global market, fulfilling the role of small development contractors.
Outsourcing is the main trouble and problem of Russian IT. In terms of the amount of work “for someone else's uncle”, only Belarusians and Indians are ahead of the Russians. The consequence of this alignment of forces are the following two troubles of Russian IT: secondary and borrowing. It's about mass copying applications, products, standards, etc.
And yet integration
Of course, sooner or later, the processes of globalization and especially digitalization (a new and clumsy official term in Russian) will lead to the alignment of all regional IT markets. This also applies to the integration of the Russian market into the global one.
In the meantime, you need to follow reliable sources of IT news and read the forecasts of reputable experts about trends and future changes in human life. To master useful gadgets, not to be afraid of new things and lead the lifestyle of a modern, advanced dynamic person.
