Worldwide Revenues for Augmented and Virtual Reality Forecast to Reach $162B in 2020
August 15, 2016 | IDCEstimated reading time: 3 minutes
According to the new Worldwide Semiannual Augmented and Virtual Reality Spending Guide from the International Data Corporation (IDC), worldwide revenues for the augmented reality and virtual reality (AR/VR) market will grow from $5.2 billion in 2016 to more than $162 billion in 2020. This represents a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 181.3% over the 2015-2020 forecast period. IDC's new spending guide expands on previous AR/VR forecasts by offering greater detail on revenues by technology, industry, and geography.
"For many years augmented and virtual reality were the stuff of science fiction. Now with powerful smartphones powering inexpensive VR headsets, the consumer market is primed for new paid and user generated content-driven experiences. Recent developments in healthcare demonstrated the powerful impact augmented reality headsets can have at the industry level, and over the next five years we expect to see that promise become realized in other fields like education, logistics, and manufacturing," Chris Chute, vice president, Customer Insights and Analysis.
"The rise of new, less expensive hardware will put virtual and augmented reality technology within the grasp of a growing numbers of companies and individuals," said Tom Mainelli, vice president, Devices & AR/VR. "But, as always, what people can do with that hardware will depend upon the applications and services that power it. In the coming years, we expect developers to create a wide range of new experiences for these devices that will fundamentally change the way many of us do work."
Sales of AR/VR hardware will generate more than 50% of worldwide revenues throughout the forecast period. AR/VR software revenues will also get off to a quick start, growing more than 200% year over year in 2016, but will quickly be overtaken by services revenues in the middle years of the forecast, as logistics and manufacturing demand enterprise-class support.
Revenues for VR systems, including viewers, software, consulting services and systems integration services, are forecast to be greater than AR-related revenues in 2016 and 2017, largely due to consumer uptake of games and paid content. After 2017, AR revenues will surge ahead, hitting critical mass in healthcare delivery and product design and management-related use cases.
From a regional perspective, Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan)(APeJ), the United States, and Western Europe will account for three quarters of worldwide AR/VR revenues. The three regions will generate comparable revenue amounts in 2016, but the United States is forecast to pull well ahead of the other two regions by 2020. Because AR/VR technology is still in the early stages of adoption, every region is expected to see annual growth of more than 100% throughout the forecast period.
The Worldwide Semiannual Augmented and Virtual Reality Spending Guide examines the AR/VR opportunity and provides insights into this rapidly growing market and how the market will develop over the next five years. Revenue data is available for eight regions, ten industries, eighteen use cases, and ten technology categories. Unlike any other research in the industry, the comprehensive spending guide was created to help IT decision makers to clearly understand the industry-specific scope and direction of AR/VR expenditures today and in the future.
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.
Suggested Items
Terran Orbital’s GEOStare SV2 Captures 3 Years of Success in High-Resolution Imaging
05/17/2024 | BUSINESS WIRETerran Orbital Corporation, a global leader in satellite-based solutions primarily serving the aerospace and defense industries, celebrates the 3rd anniversary of its successful GEOStare SV2 mission. Launched on May 15, 2021, from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, GEOStare SV2 has surpassed expectations, delivering exceptional results for commercial satellite imagery.
Indium Experts to Present on High-Temperature, Lead-Free Solder Paste and High Reliability Liquid Metal Alloys Poster at ECTC
05/16/2024 | Indium CorporationIndium Corporation Research Associate Kyle Aserian will deliver a presentation at the 74th Electronic Components and Technology Conference (ECTC) on May 31, in Denver, Colorado.
Siemens, Foxconn Team Up to Optimize Forward-thinking Manufacturing
05/16/2024 | FoxconnSiemens AG, a leading technology company, and Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn), the world’s largest electronics manufacturer, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to drive digital transformation and sustainability in smart manufacturing platforms.
TactoTek Licenses IMSE Technology to Polestar for Sustainable Electronics Design Innovation
05/15/2024 | TactoTekPolestar, the Swedish electric performance car brand, and Finnish smart surface pioneer TactoTek, have entered a collaboration to explore integration of Injection Molded Structural Electronics (IMSE) technology into Polestar’s vehicle programs.
SiPearl: Partnership with Samsung Electronics for built-in HBM in Rhea
05/14/2024 | BUSINESS WIRESiPearl, the company building the high-performance low-power European microprocessor for HPC and AI inference, has signed a partnership with Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., a world leader in advanced memory technology, to equip its Rhea series with Samsung’s advanced memory solution ideal for HPC and AI applications.