CompTIA predicts Internet of Things to drive business opportunities

Ready or not, here it comes. The internet as we know it is already changing. The Internet of Things will be the new reality almost before we've all gotten used to saying that name. According to current projections, more than 50 billion devices will be connected to the internet by 2020. Today, it's just 14.4 billion. So the amount of connectivity in the world is about to more than triple in just five short years (don't forget that 2014 is almost over). There is clearly a staggering amount of work to be done by, well, someone.

A new report from IT industry association CompTIA pinpoints some of the tech sectors where firms are about to become inordinately busy. The report was created from a survey of IT executives, so the predictions are coming from the heart of the industry itself. There are some obvious calls: 25 percent of those surveyed expect companies that manufacture networking software and equipment to see dramatically increased activity, while 23 percent said that sensor and chip manufacturers should also brace for the IoT tsunami.

The two sectors most commonly expected to profit, on the other hand, are perhaps a little less readily apparent. An impressive 45 percent of those surveyed identified device manufacturers as big beneficiaries of IoT implementation, while 43 percent expect companies that monitor and analyze massive amounts of data ("big data" firms) to be major beneficiaries. One sector that didn't make a sizeable splash in CompTIA's report, but could benefit significantly is the certification realm. The world of networking certs in particular — where CompTIA has a notable foothold with its venerable Network+ credential — is almost certainly about to get a lot of attention.

CompTIA has also created a slideshare to present additional findings. For example, while most of the devices that connect to the internet at present are essentially personal computing devices — desktop computers, laptops, tablets, phones — much of the emerging market will be dominated by equipment used in manufacturing, agriculture and other "heavy" industries. There's also a notable divide on the question of whether or not the Internet of Things has been overhyped. Just 51 percent of those surveyed feel the general level of excitment is warranted, while 49 percent come down on the side of overhyped.

There's a perhaps telling correlation between the number of IoT downplayers and the level of action that IT executives are taking to prepare for the IoT onslaught. A strong 34 percent of those surveyed are staying abreast of IoT research and industry intelligence reports, 22 percent are discussing the trend with customers, and 61 percent are at least following IoT via news stories. You can't, however, talk some people out the time-tested "wait and see" approach: 25 percent of those surveyed responded to the question of how they're preparing to take advantage of the Internet of Things by ignoring the seven action items and selecting "none of the above."