Big Data, Business Analytics Markets Primed for Massive Growth
October 03, 2016
By Steve Anderson
Contributing Writer
I suppose it was possible that the big data and business analytics markets might lose some ground; it's possible to have enough such tools, at least for a while. We all, however, know the value these tools offer, and in harsh economic conditions, they can even provide insight sufficient for survival. However, looking at the particulars of these markets may bring some surprises, as a new report from International Data Corporation (IDC (News - Alert)) fills in just how far up these markets could run.
The IDC report, “Worldwide Semiannual Big Data and Analytics Spending Guide,” starts with a bombshell in its own right: just in 2016, the market is expected to yield 11.3 percent growth over 2015's numbers, and will actually grow slightly faster than that at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.7 percent through 2020. Essentially, every gain seen between 2015 and 2016 will be repeated and then some.
No small amount of growth is represented there, and the biggest drivers of this growth are the sheer numbers of players involved in the field. Not only are banks interested, but so too are “discrete manufacturing” operations, along with government groups, process manufacturing and professional services. Banking currently has the largest investment in analytics—roughly $17 billion this year alone—and it will continue that spending to maintain that growth. A host of other industries will step in, but the five mentioned previously will account for almost half of all worldwide spending on big data and business analytics.
IDC program director for customer insights and analysis Jessica Goepfert commented, “This year and over the life of the forecast, we're expecting to see healthy growth in spending on big data and analytics technologies from nearly all industries, including banking and telecommunications. In our end-user research, respondents from organizations in these industries are placing a high priority on BDA initiatives over other technology investments. Within banking, many of these efforts are focused on risk management, fraud prevention and compliance related activities.”
One point not immediately noted in the study, that may be part of that other half of spending noted, is retail. Retailers are increasingly taking advantage of big data operations to derive patterns in customer spending and foot traffic, as well as online use, to help predict the next major shopping target or even get insight on how to lay out a store. Regardless, that's just one use among many; we've already seen how several different breeds of business are putting these tools to work, so with all those options, it's not surprising that the market supplying all those functions is primed for big growth.
It may not work out, in the end, the way IDC expects, but there likely won't be much decline for big data and analytics tools soon. There are just too many uses for these tools to pass them up lightly.
Edited by Alicia Young