Telecom Expense Management Market Set for Big 2012: TEMIA Head
January 03, 2012
By Beecher Tuttle, TMCnet Contributor
Telecom expense management (TEM) and wireless expense management (WEM) solutions will see increased adoption rates in 2012 as enterprises continue to recognize the value of visibility and control over their telecom expenses, according to Joe Basili, Managing Director of the Telecom Expense Management Industry Association.
Basili's optimistic take on the future of the telecom expense management sector was one of his chief predictions for 2012, published on TelecomReseller.com. Basili believes the TEM and WEM markets are set to explode in the coming year, powered mostly by greater penetrations rates among small and midsize enterprises as well as new government initiatives aimed at controlling telecom costs.
TEM expansion into Europe, Asia and other markets will also lead to additional growth, he adds. The market will be dominated by vendors that can provide proactive best practices, analytics and business intelligence tools.
Basili's forecast for the next 12 months also involves carriers, which are putting an end to unlimited data plans, making telecom expense tools even more imperative. With TEM tools, organizations can avoid the bill shock that often occurs when users roll out of an unlimited plan.
"TEM and WEM providers will respond to increased awareness of bill shocks with more proactive consulting services and technology to address the root cause of these problems," he says.
Basili's final prediction for 2012 is that data breaches will continue to haunt organizations large and small, leading many companies to reevaluate their Bring Your Own Device to Work (BYOD) policy. Data breaches and network hacks led to billions of dollars in losses for several companies in 2011, and show no signs of slowing down.
The proliferation of smartphones and tablets in the enterprise has made the mobile market an area of particular interest for hackers. BYOD policies surely increase the likelihood of an attack, especially for organizations that transmit confidential data, including healthcare companies and merchants.
"IT departments will realize that BYOD and Individual Liable programs only work for a small segment of workers," Basili stresses.
Cloud security specialist Trend Micro (News - Alert) agrees with the data breach premonition, noting that Android (News - Alert) mobile devices should be viewed as particularly attractive targets for hackers. With its current app distribution model and its open source nature, Android sets up as an ideal breeding ground for cyber attacks, says Trend Micro.
Beecher Tuttle is a TMCnet contributor. He has extensive experience writing and editing for print publications and online news websites. He has specialized in a variety of industries, including health care technology, politics and education. To read more of his articles, please visit his columnist page.
Edited by Juliana Kenny