IDC Unveils Top Technology Predictions for Thailand for 2018 and Beyond

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IDC announced today its top technology predictions for 2018 and beyond at the IDC Thailand FutureScapes event held at The Athenee Hotel Bangkok. The event highlighted the massive changes within the 3rd platform era that will dramatically accelerate and scale digital innovation over the next three to four years as digital transformation reaches the macroeconomic scale.

IDC Thailand predicts that transformation initiatives will shift into overdrive during this period as the understanding of digitalization across businesses mature, leading to the development of a fully-scaled Digital Transformation (DX) economy. In order to be able to lead in a fully-scaled DX economy, organizations must become digital native enterprises (DNE). DNE is the one that is able to harness the power of technology to multiply innovation and accelerate their businesses' appetite for transformation.

“As the Thai economy shifts toward DX economy, the country’s IT spending is expected to be close to 440 billion Baht in 2018, with continuous growth to reach 470 billion Baht by 2021,” says Jarit Sidhu, IDC Thailand’s Head of Operations. “We are seeing more Thai enterprises becoming digitally capable especially by transforming the ways they operate, develop products and services, and engage with customers to stay ahead in a competitive digital economy.”

“While we see more companies are becoming digitally capable, business leaders should understand DX economy will emerge, driving enterprises to multiply their digital innovation pace and scale through mastery of digital platforms. We expect more organizations to place digital transformation (DX) as a core strategy to their business so that they don’t miss out clear opportunities with the rise of new DX economy.,” said Sudev Bangah, Managing Director IDC ASEAN.

The IDC Thailand FutureScapes 2018 DX predictions primarily focus on the four pillar technology areas; Cloud, Mobility, Social and Big Data and analytics as well as six innovation accelerators; Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR), Cognitive/AI System, Next-Gen Security, Internet of Things (IoT), 3D Printing and Robotics.

Jarit Sidhu and IDC Thailand Research Analysts revealed the strategic top predictions that will unfold in 2018 and beyond, resulting in the biggest impact to organizations in the country.

#1: DX Platforms. By 2020, 20% of All Enterprises Will Have Fully Articulated an Organizationwide Digital Transformation Platform Strategy and Will Be in the Process of Implementing That Strategy as the New IT Core for Competing in the Digital Economy.

#2: Open API Ecosystems. By 2021, More Than One-Third of the TH500 Will See an Average of One-Third of Their Digital Services Interactions Come Through Their Open API Ecosystems, Up from Virtually 0% in 2017 — Amplifying Their Digital Reach Far Beyond Their Own Customer Interactions.

#3: Digital Business. By 2018, 30% of CIOs Will Put Experiential Engagement, Data Monetization, or Digital Business at Scale at the Top of Their Agenda.

#4: Cloud 2.0: Distributed and Specialized. By 2021, Enterprises' Spending on Cloud Services and Cloud-Enabling Hardware, Software, and Services Will Reach THB48 Billion, Leveraging the Diversifying Cloud Environment That Is 15% at the Edge, Over 10% Specialized (Non-x86) Compute, and Over 30% Multicloud.

#5: Risk and Trust. By 2018, 30% of CIOs Will Refocus Cybersecurity Around Authentication and Trust to Manage Business Risks, Initiating the Retirement of Systems That Cannot Ensure Data Protection.

#6: DX Talent. By 2020, 25% of New Operation-Based Technical Position Hires Will Be Screened for Analytical and AI Skills, Enabling the Development of Data-Centric DX Projects Without Hiring New Data-Centric Talent.

#7: Digital Assistant. By 2019, Personal Digital Assistants and Bots Will Execute Only 3% of Transactions, But They Will Influence 10% of Sales, Driving Growth Among the Organizations That Have Mastered Utilizing Them.

#8: 5G – Mobile IoT. By 2021, 5G's Broad Enablement of IoT Use Cases Will Drive 50% of TH500 Companies to Spend THB 200 Million on Connectivity Management Solutions.

#9: Home IoT Security. By 2020, 22% of DIY Home IoT Solutions Will Have Experienced a Security Breach, as Compared with 12% of Solutions Implemented by a Fully Managed Service Provider.

#10: Mobile Payment. By 2020, Mobile Devices Will Become the De Facto Payment Acceptance Terminal in Thailand and Among New SMBs — This Access Drives 10% Growth in Revenue in SMBs.

About IDC FutureScapes

IDC FutureScapes are used to shape IT strategy and planning for the enterprise by providing a basic framework for evaluating IT initiatives in terms of their value to business strategy now and in the foreseeable future. IDC's FutureScapes are comprised of a set of decision imperatives designed to identify a range of pending issues that CIOs and senior technology professionals will confront within the typical 3-year business planning cycle.

About IDC

International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. With more than 1,100 analysts worldwide, IDC offers global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries. IDC's analysis and insight helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community to make fact-based technology decisions and to achieve their key business objectives. Founded in 1964, IDC is a subsidiary of IDG, the world's leading technology media, research, and events company.