By Ludo Fassati, Head of IoT, Vodafone Americas & June Sugiyama, Director, Vodafone Americas Foundation
Under normal circumstances, it’s hard to imagine what a typical day without internet access would look like. Connectivity drives the global economy and, now, our societies too. Today, digital connection provides access to essential goods, to family and friends, work and education. It’s vital to our well-being. Our reliance on IoT was increasing even before the pandemic, but the crisis is creating an exponential need. In a new forecast, Juniper Research predicts we’ll see 83 billion IoT connections over the next five years, with a 20% market growth in 2020 alone.
Yet as technology moves us forward, we must be mindful not to leave anyone behind. Regrettably, however, universal access is not standard in at-risk communities.