Beacons will be big in the world of the Internet of Things and it lookslike the big revenue in that space will come from advertising.
On the downside, the scope of that advertising may eventually hit a ceiling, based on some new global research.
Beacon shipments passed a million units last year and will blow past 400 million within five years, according to ABI Research.
Patrick Connolly, the principal analyst on the ABI Research report, toldme that the use of beacons at retail will be explosive over the next year or so, as merchants complete beacon trials.
The physical number of beacons outside of retail and away from advertisingwill be significantly larger, according to Connolly.
The analyst sees higher IoT uses of beacons in places like connected homes, smart cities and vending machines around the world.
“There may be something like 20 or 50 beacons at a retailer but there could be hundreds or thousands at places like airports and hospitals,” said Connolly.
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