Mobile health has high potential for growth, study finds

NEW YORK — The healthcare sector is thought to hold the most promise for mobile technology growth and development, according to a new survey by Deloitte.



Deloitte published results of a study, "Open Mobile: The growth era accelerates," which surveyed 250 senior executives from network carriers, mobile device manufacturers, software application developers and infrastructure component manufacturers, found that 78% of respondents considered health care and life sciences to have the most potential in stimulating business model innovation, along with retail and consumer products and financial services and commerce.



According to the study, wireless healthcare revenue, which was less than half a billion dollars in 2009, is projected to grow to more than $4 billion next year, and analysts expect the market for mobile health, or mHealth, to grow to about $4.6 billion by early 2014. Meanwhile, consumer products and retail are expected to experience "explosive" growth in the use of mobile technology.