Revenues from mobile connected M2M and embedded devices will rise to US$18.9bn globally by 2014, with consumer and commercial telematics and in-vehicle applications accounting for over a third of the total, according to Juniper Research.

Other areas that will contribute significantly to M2M revenues include mobile connected buildings, driven by security needs, and utility metering, driven by regulatory initiatives in Europe and economic stimulus funds in the USA.

“Despite the ongoing downturn in the automotive sector in developed markets, the most promising M2M area remains the automotive industry,” said Anthony Cox, senior analyst at Juniper Research. “There has been a slow-down in the adoption of telematics because new car sales have stalled, but we anticipate that by 2014 in developed markets over half of new vehicles will be sold with telematics devices using cellular connections.”

Operators are starting to view the market for embedded devices and M2M as a market in its own right, rather than an add-on to existing activity, concludes the report. To effectively address the market for embedded devices and M2M, operators need to consider reappraising accounting practices and form alliances and partnerships with M2M specialists.