Location-Based services were at the top of Gartner’s list “Top 10 Consumer Applications To Watch in 2012”
Gartner Inc., the world’s leading information technology research and advisory company, recently announced that it has identified “what it believes will be the most important mobile applications in 2012.’
Gartner (NYSE: IT) analysts identified the top 10 cutting-edge technologies and trends for 2012, focusing on high-end devices with an average selling price of more than $300 dollars. Location-based services was listed first on the company’s top-10 list.
GPS service comes pre-installed in essentially any smartphone on the market these days, so location-based services and apps are becoming increasingly popular. LBSs can locate specific addresses with street-corner accuracy, and help friends and family find each other. Plus you can set up virtual fences around key locations, such as malls, parks, beaches, movie theaters, sports facilities, work locations … and be notified when children or employees enter or leave these important places.
Here is what Gartner analysts said about location-based services (LBSs):
Location is one of the main enablers that deliver services to users based on their context and, Gartner expects the total user base of consumer LBSs to reach 1.4 billion users by 2014. LBS strive to deliver features and functionalities in tune with the user’s context, taking into account the user’s location, personal preference, gender, age, profession, intention and so on, thus offering a more-intelligent user experience than basic location services can.
Recently there’s been more LBSs focused on allowing users to track one another. Consumers commonly use these services for one of two purposes — to track phones, or to track family members. There are also location-based services popular for businesses such as vehicle tracking and fleet and inventory management.