The latest news on the machine-to-machine (M2M) industry points to even faster growth in M2M and identifies the business sectors that stand to be most impacted. Strategy Analytics says M2M will grow from $45 billion in annual revenue in 2013 to an amazing $242 billion in 2022. The report's author, Andrew Brown, was quoted by M2M World News as saying, "Healthcare, consumer electronics, utilities, and vehicles are areas that will see major revenue growth, through the driving out of inefficiency in existing processes, as well as the creation of new service opportunities. The growth in providers of regulatory compliant NOCs (network operation centers), investment from industrial giants like GE, and growth in the number of 'big data,' system integrator, IT, and analytics companies highlight the real and significant revenue potential that exists in the M2M market." In its own report, the market research firm Ovum predicted that the healthcare industry will lead the way in spending, with $7.9 billion in revenues by 2018, and manufacturing coming in a close second. Ovum says M2M connections will triple by 2018 and top 360 million. In announcing its findings it said, "Ovum's M2M forecasts present a more modest and sober picture than some of those produced by other industry pundits." "This is not a forecast of the 'Internet of Things (IoT),' but rather of managed and paid-for connections over public mobile networks," said Jeremy Green, Principal Analyst, Industry Communications & Broadband at Ovum. "For telcos, there are really two opportunities: to stand back and provide the connectivity for M2M services, or to roll up their sleeves and get involved with the end-to-end provision of solutions." Ovum said, "The first is a smaller opportunity but is much more straightforward for telcos to address. The second is much bigger, but it involves new skills and competencies and defining new kinds of relationship with systems integrators and software development." InformationWeek explored some real-life M2M applications in a recent story in which it said, "Healthcare is another area where M2M has the potential to transform an industry. Machine-to-machine devices—including blood pressure monitors, glucose meters, and electronic weight scales—have integrated sensors that check patients' conditions in the home, thereby saving a trip to the doctor's office or hospital. An M2M monitor can also alert a physician when it detects a potential health problem." The article went on to say, "Industrial and consumer sectors are finding innovative uses for machine-to-machine devices in places you might not expect. Automotive insurers, for instance, are starting to offer drivers the option of installing an M2M device that monitors their driving habits." It cited Progressive Insurance's Snapshot program, which offers drivers lower rates in exchange for allowing the company to monitor their driving habits using an M2M device. InformationWeek noted, "Intrusive M2M devices that study your every move raise privacy concerns, of course, but the opt-in nature of monitoring programs such as Snapshot may thwart some potential criticism."