Despite mounting concerns about the ongoing economic recession throughout Western Europe, the ICT sector will continue to show progress within the coming financial year - to the tune of 4%-8% growth annually, says Christian Morales, corporate VP and GM for Intel in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
During a keynote speech yesterday at the Intel Solutions Summit, in Dublin, Ireland, Morales offered several key insights into the technology growth areas the group is targeting.
New device form factors and features is the first. According to Morales, consumer preference has tended towards tablet and smartphone offerings in recent years, forcing hardware manufacturers to reconsider what motivates purchasing decisions.
Although Intel has aggressively entered the mobile computing market with several new products, the company intends to use these insights to further refine notebook and personal computing solutions.
"The notebook is currently being reinvented. To be a key contributor to the technology sector you need innovation. We are using mobile insights to change the way users relate to personal computers. A great example of this is hybrid devices."
Go big
Big data, better understood as the analyses of large volumes of data in real-time, will also be a major focus area for Intel going forward, comments Morales.
"The more devices we have, the more information we create. Understanding this information at a deep level holds significant value within a variety of disciplines.
"Every 14 seconds, humanity uploads a petabyte of data to the Internet. Intel is currently developing solutions that will help us swiftly assess the nature and significance of this content."
Make a connection
'The Internet of Things' represents a reality in which almost every device is connected, and contributes to a network. In practice, this could include more intelligent traffic management or advanced healthcare solutions, which are less reliant on human input.
According to Morales, technology of this nature will steer humanity into the future, while acting as a significant arbiter for ICT growth.
"By 2020, we at Intel expect there will be 20 billion connected devices scattered across the globe. The implications associated with this are significant. If these resources are properly harnessed it can directly benefit humanity in a very fundamental way."
Lock it up
With these emerging technologies in mind, it is vitally important that consumers and partners alike continue to focus on data security, believes Morales.
"Beyond the devices, data and intelligent systems, you need security. It's not enough to build a wonderful house with a great front door; you need to ensure the back door is also protected.
"This is a challenge that we at Intel hope to continue to address. Our recent acquisition of McAfee is just one example of our dedication to security. We certainly expect this to become a major ICT growth area in the future."
Share