The annual trend report from network management software company Auvik has revealed interesting insights about the state of networking trends, underlining the urgent requirement for businesses to adopt advanced security measures in an increasingly complex technological landscape. Using data from sources like Google Trends, Auvik's study examined over 1,000 data points and internet user behaviour dating back to 2004 to uncover these insights.
The research highlights several key trends in the area of networking. Foremost among these is the robust Wi-Fi 7 market, which has already hit $1 billion in value months ahead of its anticipated launch in May 2024. The transformative Wi-Fi 7 technology is projected to enjoy immense growth, becoming a $24.2 billion market by the year 2030, outlining the imperative for IT professionals to explore this burgeoning field.
Surges have been noted in the area of cloud computing security, with the search term showing a 106% increase since December 2018 and nearing its five-year peak by December 2023. This upward trend points to the growing complexity of protecting cloud environments and signifies the importance of implementing robust security measures.
With a two-year worldwide economic downturn, there has been a marked increase in interest concerning the 'cloud cost.' At 95% of its global 5-year peak, it is clear that organisations are looking for ways to optimise their spending on cloud solutions. This has created a challenging task for IT professionals to balance between cutting-edge and cost-effective services.
The report also highlights a significant surge in the search term 'network security management.' These searches reached a level in December 2023 that hadn't been seen since 2007, likely due to the rise of remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic and associated cybersecurity challenges. This development underlines the need for stronger network security measures in an environment of escalating cyber threats.
In 2024, Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) is predicted to attain $182 billion, reflecting a 26.6% growth in end-user spending over 2023. By exceeding the projected growth of platform as a service (PaaS) and software as a service (SaaS), which are expected to rise by 21.5% and 18.9%, respectively, a strategic shift by IT professionals towards versatile and scalable cloud infrastructure is indicated.
The collection of these trends depicts an accelerating evolution in the networking environment, a zone where technology, efficiency, and security come together. For IT professionals, these networking trends offer a clear path to the future of network management and underscore the shifting focus towards innovative, secure, and efficient cloud networks.