5. Telecom Companies Will Continue To Double Down On IoT

Telecom vendors in 2016 were rushing to carve out their share of the IoT market. Verizon, in particular, made big investments in its IoT platform, ThingSpace– including a blockbuster $2.4 billion acquisition of fleet and mobile management company Fleetmatics, and an acquisition of smart LED lighting provider startup Sensity Systems.

In 2017, other telcos will follow in Verizon's footsteps, under continued pressure to grow their Internet of Things businesses faster, particularly through acquisitions.

"Senior management may view this as too long a timescale and some operators may explore acquisitions or investments as a result," said analyst firm Analysys Mason in a recent report.