Cellular M2M Communication Module Shipments to Quadruple by 2013

(Top News, 20 May 2008)

Markets for cellular machine-to-machine (M2M) communication modules are expected to show strong growth in the next five years. According to ABI Research, shipments will total nearly 80 million modules in 2013.

"The latest cellular M2M module market data collated by ABI Research shows strong growth trends that are closely in line with our earlier forecasts," says senior analyst Sam Lucero. "We see four applications that will be particularly fertile for M2M and should provide significant opportunities for vendors."

- OEM telematics
While encompassing a variety of services, OEM telematics today is driven by automatic emergency service applications such as GM's widely deployed OnStar, as well as by in-dash navigation systems. "In the US, the competitive response to OnStar's success is a major factor in promoting cellular M2M," says Lucero. Most of the major car manufacturers are responding with their own telematics programs. This will be more evident in the 2009-2010 model years. Later, eCall, despite a shaky start, is expected to create strong demand in Europe. There are also OEMT telematics programs in the Asia-Pacfic region, particularly Japan and South Korea.

- Advanced (or "smart") metering
Rollouts of electricity and water meters that transmit their data automatically via powerline, wireless sensor networks, and cellular connections are powered by utilities' desire for demand-response functionality, for energy-efficiency purposes as well as operational efficiencies. It is happening in all developed regions of the world.

- Point-of-sale terminals including ATMs
The ongoing shift to cashless transactions sees POS applications going increasingly wireless. Lucero notes that, traditionally, merchants had to arrange their own connectivity. "Now there is a global push to bundle cellular connectivity as an offering to merchants along with the POS terminal," says Lucero. Major vendors VeriFone, Ingenico, and Hypercom are rolling out their own cellular connectivity services worldwide.

Home security and managed home automation. There's a trend to add wireless as a backup or replacement option for traditional landline connectivity. Cellular service providers want to get into the security and managed home automation markets.

Click here for more information on the report "M2M Market Forecasts" by ABI Research


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