Is The UK Losing Out On £9BN Worth Of 'Smart' Savings?

According to the Smart Society Barometer report from Samsung, the UK economy stands to lose out on over £9bn over the next year - due to the pace of smart tech adoption being too sluggish.

According to the research, which involved speaking to 1,000 British companies and 2,500 consumers, UK businesses stand to lose up to £5.6bn over the next 12 months by failing to utilise smart technology appropriately in their organisation. And UK consumers will pay to the tune of £3.6bn for a lack of understanding of how smart tech could benefit them.

Indeed the effects of this "smart deficit", as Samsung calls it, are already here, with 27% of businesses admitting that they lost a contract or client because they didn't have the right smart technology to hand. In the telecoms industry, that number was 31% of companies missing out on possible work, with 37% of finance firms also admitting losing contracts due to a lack of smart adoption.

When questioned on how much money the further adoption of smart tech could save their companies, UK business leaders stated an average of £81,000 over the next year. However, one in ten businesses have yet to adopt any smart tech whatsoever – and IT managers also said that just 11% of their budget was going towards the smart stuff.

What Price Those Promised 'Smart Cities'?

As for the consumer angle, the areas where UK citizens will lose out on money (some £3.6bn of it, as we mentioned) due to failing to adopt smart technology themselves include smart meters for utilities, and smart home devices that can also produce energy savings.

These have the lowest adoption rates at just 6 per cent for both, yet they are among the products most respondents said they were keen to purchase in the future (60% and 63% indicated this for meters and smart home gadgets respectively).

Meanwhile, 24% of consumers said that their lack of understanding of what smart tech is, and what it can do for them, is the main barrier to them adopting the technology.

Andy Griffiths, President of Samsung UK & Ireland, commented: "The Smart Deficit that we have identified through the Smart Society Barometer should act as a wake-up call for the technology industry and its partners. Smart technology adoption is happening and where it is being used most effectively, the benefits are already being felt both by individuals and businesses."

"If we are to accelerate as a smart society, we need to fully understand how to get the most out of this technology. At Samsung, we understand that in order to help achieve this, we must play our part in educating businesses and consumers on unlocking the true potential that smart technology can bring to the UK."

Author: Darren Allan