The analyst, Berg Insight, has released a report, Retail Applications and Wireless M2M – 2nd Edition, which offers first-hand insights into the adoption of wireless connectivity in the vending, parking, ticketing, ATM and POS (point of sale) terminal markets. The report includes expert commentary, 5-year industry forecasts, and real-life case studies.

The report notes that the retail industry is an important vertical for cellular M2M connectivity, with 10.3m cellular connections today, and a potential market size of nearly 80m POS terminals, ATMs, vending machines, parking meters and fare collection devices worldwide. Berg Insight forecasts that the number of cellular M2M connections in the retail industry will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21.6 per cent to reach 33.2m connections worldwide in 2017. Shipments of cellular M2M devices will at the same time increase at a CAGR of 10.7 per cent, from 5.2m units in 2011 to 9.6m units in 2017.

Cellular M2M technology enables devices such as POS terminals and ATMs to be used at new locations where fixed line connectivity is unavailable or impractical. The technology has a more transformational effect on markets such as vending and parking, where machine operators need to reorganize their operations in order to benefit from the availability of real-time information.

The report is available in hard copy or PDF formats. There’s more information here.