According to a new research report from the analyst firm Berg Insight, the global number of mobile network connections used for wireless machine-to-machine (M2M) communication will increase by 22 percent in 2013 to reach 164.5 million.

East Asia, Western Europe and North America are the main regional markets, accounting for around 75 percent of the installed base. In the next five years, the global number of wireless M2M connections is forecasted to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 24.4 percent to reach 489.2 million in 2018.

The report highlights the connected enterprise and big data analytics as two of the main trends that will shape the global wireless M2M industry in 2014. “The world’s best managed corporations across all industries are in the process of mastering how connectivity can help improving the efficiency of their daily operations and the customer experience”, said Tobias Ryberg, Senior Analyst, Berg Insight. “Some of the best examples are found in the automotive industry where leading global car brands now offer a wide selection of connected applications, ranging from remote diagnostics, safety and security to LTE-powered infotainment services such as streaming music.”

Berg Insight believes that the next step in the evolution of the wireless M2M market will be an increasing focus on data analytics. “M2M applications generate enormous quantities of data about things such as vehicles, machinery or other forms of equipment and behaviours such as driving style, energy consumption or device utilisation. Big data technology enables near real-time analysis of these data sets to reveal relationships, dependencies and perform predictions of outcomes and behaviours. The right data analytics tools and the expertise on how to use them can create massive value for businesses”, said Ryberg. “Over the next 12-18 months we expect to see a series of announcements of new partnerships between mobile operators and big data technology leaders to address the vast business opportunities in this space”.