'Mega' technology trends for 2011

(Robnroll)

"Smart," "Cloud," "Social," "Open," and "Hybrid" - these are just some of the "Mega Trends" driving IT research and development and the production of consumer electronics products in 2011.

Samsung SDS, a subsidiary of Samsung that provides information technology and consulting services, believes these key elements will have a huge impact on society and economy in the near future.

"This year, the number of smart phone users in Korea reached 4 million, and the scope of smart devices was expanded from mobile phone and PC to TV, refrigerator, and automobile," said Samsung SDS in their 2011 IT Mega Trends report published on October 20.

"This development is expected to enable M2M communication, which means automatic communication among these devices."

Consumers around the world have adopted smartphone and mobile device technology at an astounding rate. This explosive growth trend has in turn brought about extreme changes in both consumer and business habits and resulted in a rise in social networking services, location-based marketing and social business.

"A key change in corporate culture is Open Revolution. This is an era when people can get the information on how to design an atomic bomb through the Internet. In such an era, there is no room for the word 'closed,' says Samsung SDS.

"In other words, the Open Revolution will collect various ideas of a large number of ordinary people, rather than ideas of a small number of elites, and by doing so, will unleash creativity."

Samsung SDS's 8 Mega Trends for 2011:

1. Social Business
2. Immersive Interface
3. Hybrid Web
4. Connected Device
5. Mobile Cloud Service
6. Continuous Intelligence
7. Open Collaboration
8. Service-Driven Network

http://www.sds.samsung.com/index.jsp