SMB mobile app demand may drive tablet growth

Small- and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) make up the backbone of the American economy, and trends in this segment can often be extrapolated into points of national interest. The latest report from market research firm In-Stat has revealed that SMBs plan to increase their spending on wireless data services by 42 percent from 2010 to 2015.

For wireless providers, revenue from voice, video and instant messaging has essentially stagnated.

"Future growth is all about providing data access to smartphones, tablets, and notebooks," said In-Stat data analyst Greg Potter.

Much of this spending is expected to revolve around mobile applications designed to enhance business productivity.

According to ABI Research, business-to-employee and business-to-customer mobile applications are expected to expand at a compounded annual growth rate of nearly 90 percent. By 2016, as many as 830 million people will be using these tools.

Since tablet computing entered the conversation a few years ago, manufacturers found early adopters primarily in the consumer segment, responding to media-rich capabilities such as movie streaming and e-reading. Increased adoption from SMBs for key business functions may be all that is needed to officially cement the technology in the marketplace.