ICT

The pace of innovation in the information and communications technology (ICT) is startling. Technological advancement as well as economic and socio-cultural developments are the fuel.

The connectivity of systems, appliances and people is playing an ever larger role in all areas of the economy: machine to machine (M2M) and human to machine (H2M) communication is optimizing various production and business processes as part of Industry 4.0 and is increasing the efficiency of supply chains.
The Internet of Things is entering more and more areas of private life: from eLearning and eHealth to Smart Home up to cash- and cardless payment via Mobile Payment. Mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets as well as wearables such as the Smartwatch are enjoying more and more popularity. The number of apps people can use at any time to learn, track themselves and network, is growing dynamically, and with it the volume of data created.

Disruptive services are changing the ICT sector profoundly. Digital flat rates and over-the-top (OTT) services such as Skype, Whatsapp or Facebook, which can be used simply and cheaply via mobile internet and WiFi, call into question conventional methods of information and communication and their price models. Telecommunication providers must offer innovative, customer-oriented products and services in order to prevail in spite of market saturation and price pressure.

The expansion of the core business to new business areas, along with cross-industry cooperation, allows companies of the ICT sector to exploit the opportunities of digitalization optimally. The collection, analysis and intelligent use of Big Data offer huge potential, since products and services can be personalized and thus the customer experience can be improved. At the same time, Big Data requires large server capacity and must be protected from data abuse – therefore, secure, high-performance Cloud solutions are gaining importance.