Next year will see significant developments in mobility, driven by continuous industry innovation and a growing tech-savvy millennial community, says Fahad Al-Bannai, CEO of Axiom Telecom.
He said he expects 2017 to be a prosperous year for the digital world, as the boundaries to what can be achieved with a mobile device are once again broken.
Perhaps one of the most interesting emerging developments is the beacon technology, he said. Apple’s iBeacon technology has been a pioneer on this front, allowing mobile apps to understand their position on a micro-local scale and deliver hyper-contextual content to users based on location. The result is that businesses can offer real-time deals based on where they are at any given point in time.
“Imagine you are walking down a boulevard, hungry, and you receive a notification that your favorite burger spot is offering a great deal — that is what location-based services, such as beacon technology, is allowing businesses to do,” said Al-Bannai.
“It gives them the ability to reach the right customer, at the right time and the right location. This is definitely a great tool for businesses, but will also be beneficial to the end-user, as it helps them find what they need, when they need it.”
Such remarkable developments in technology and the continuous success being realized by major international brands is inspiring small businesses to follow suit and develop apps of their own. According to figures reported by the mobile app publishing platform, Bizness Apps, more than 50 percent of small business will be looking to create a mobile app next year. Furthermore, by 2017, its expected that more than 268 billion downloads will generate $77 billion worth of revenue for the app industry.
In a market like the UAE, where SMEs represent more than 94 percent of businesses in the country, this offers the app industry enormous potential.
“If you think of the one device that we rely on all day to keep us connected, it is our smartphone. Consider the possibilities, then, of being able to reach a relevant audience using this valuable instrument,” said Al- Bannai.
Mobile manufacturers such as Samsung and HTC have already started exploring this space with the Gear VR and VIVE, respectively, but that is only the beginning of a whirlwind of cutting-edge virtual and augmented reality technologies that will soon hit the market, says Al Bannai.

Source: Arab News