• by Chuck Martin , Staff Writer, March 3, 2016

It looks like The Internet of Things is heading toward mainstream adoption in business this year.

By the end of the year, more than four in 10 businesses will be running at least some form of IoT project, according to a new study.

The majority (64%) of businesses plan to eventually implement IoT.

The study by Gartner is based on a survey of 465 business professionals in North America, EMEA, Asia/Pacific and Latin America.

While fewer than a third of businesses currently have IoT projects underway, that number is projected to grow 50% this year, reaching 43% of all organizations overall. Here’s the status:

• 29% -- IoT projects underway
• 14% -- Plan to start IoT in next 12 months
• 21% -- Plan IoT projects after this year

The primary business case for IoT has been internally focused, such as improving efficiencies and cost savings, according to Gartner.

However, a market shift in focus toward customer-facing benefits is coming with a dramatic shift in focus on customer experience. A much higher IoT focus on end customers is expected over the next 12 months.

“In effect, IoT programs and processes will become competitive marketplace weapons starting in 2016,” states the report.

Consistent with other studies, the biggest IoT challenges are security, integration and managing business requirements.

But no matter, the IoT freight train is heading right at consumers, and all the brands that market to them.