Type of Article: MacTech Blog

Verto Analytics (http://vertoanalytics.com), a consumer-centric audience measurement company, has released a new report that provides contextual and granular insight into today’s cross-device consumer online shopping behavior along with factors that shape their buying journey.

With the proliferation of online shopping, fueled increasingly by mobile devices and integrated advertising within social media platforms, retailers are tapping into e-commerce sales now more than ever before. The National Retail Federation projects online retail sales will grow between 10 and 12% this year.

IDC (www.idc.com) forecasts total IT spending by small and medium-size businesses (SMBs) to be nearly $602 billion in 2018, an increase of 4.9% over 2017.

With a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.7% for the 2016-2021 forecast period, spending by businesses with fewer than 1,000 employees on IT hardware, software, and services, including business services, is expected to reach $684 billion on in 2021, notes the research group.

Meaningful artificial intelligence (AI) deployments are just beginning to take place, according to Gartner, Inc. (www.gartner.com). The research group’s 2018 CIO Agenda Survey shows that 4% of CIOs have implemented AI, while a further 46% have developed plans to do so.

New data from Juniper Research (www.juniperresearch.com) has found that a combination of increased uptake in digital products, coupled with new, positive regulation, will drive a surge in online gambling wagers.

The research group adds that they will reach a total of $1 trillion globally in 2022, more than the annual deficit being added to US national debt; total online wagers are expected to reach $700 billion this year, up from just over $620 billion in 2017.

According to DRAMeXchange, a division of TrendForce (www.trendforce.com) the DRAM revenue for the fourth quarter of 2017 (4Q17) grew by 14.2% qurater-over-quarter (QoQ) to a new high, and the DRAM revenue for the entire 2017 grew by 76% year-over-year (YoY).

The main reasons are the rising mobile DRAM prices and opportunities provided by the year-end busy season and the releases of new flagship smartphones in 4Q17, according to the research group. Samsung in particular led the charge in hiking up the quotes of mobile DRAM products.