Juniper Networks Inc. (NYSE: JNPR), which was one of the companies that Credit Suisse recently said would benefit handily from tax reform, has shared what it expects will be the top trends for the technology industry for 2018. Specifically it has a list of 10 predictions for the coming year.
Not surprisingly, tech and internet giants figure prominently on the list. Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) are expected not only to be key players in streaming sporting events next year, but also to be leaders in driving growth in the social payments space.
Juniper’s predictions for 2018 are as follows:
- Amazon and Facebook Lead OTT Bids for Major Sporting Rights
- Apple, Facebook, Google Bring Social Payments to the Masses
- AI and Blockchain to Power Numerous Fintech & Insurance Solutions
- Edge Computing to Fast Track the IoT
- Facial Recognition Applications Surge
- The Rise of Robo-advisors & App-based Investments
- Machine Learning Coming to Verify Your Identity
- Chinese Cards and Wallets Achieve Scale in Western Markets
- Smart Toys Educating the Masses
- Wireless Charging Market Moves Up a Gear
Juniper believes that Amazon ultimately will be the biggest over-the-top player in sports events:
Not only would it gain revenues from new Amazon Prime customers joining mainly for the football, but additionally revenues derived from retail sales by those customers via the Prime channel. This significantly reduces the number of new customers it would require to cover the costs of a rights package.
Amazon, which was also on Credit Suisse’s list of the top tax reform winners, has already made forays into the sports arena. It streams the NFL games at no charge for members of its Amazon Prime service, though the service initially had only meager success compared with broadcast television. Still, this may be only the first few plays in a long game.
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