Health and enterprise markets, wearables, and beacons enabled...

Health and enterprise markets, wearables, and beacons enabled by Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology will help revive the GPS tracking device market, which is forecast to pass $3.5 billion in 2019, said ABI Research. While having “huge potential,” the GPS personal tracking market has been slowed by awareness, return on investment, product cost, subscription models and indoor location, which have blocked the economies of scale required to support marketing campaigns, ABI said. Over the last 12 months, the GPS market has seen growth from wearables and enterprise companies using tracking technology for workforce management, it said. The connected home market will offer opportunities for GPS tracking devices through personal protection products for children, pets, cars and seniors, it said. “Carriers eager to solve the problem of saturated markets have begun to reconsider this space” due to the emergence of wearables and the Internet of Things, said senior analyst Patrick Connolly. Low-cost GPS devices are being adopted worldwide for various applications, and Bluetooth Smart-enabled beacons will solve the issue of indoor location while helping to create a low-cost entry point for OEMs and consumers, he said. “With BLE beacons forecast to penetrate into all aspects of life over the next three years, consumer awareness and acceptance will quickly emerge,” Connolly said.