Connected healthcare device sales will exceed $3 billion globally by 2019, according to a report from analysis firm Juniper Research.
Juniper explains that the connected healthcare devices it looked at include blood pressure cuffs, oximeters for diabetes, and sleep monitors for sleep apnea.
According to the research firm, this growth can be partially attributed to the result of Apple and Samsung's newly launched health platforms, HealthKit and SAMI. Samsung unveiled its Samsung Architecture Multimodal Interactions, or SAMI, in May. It described the platform as a “data broker” that future third party health tracking devices could upload data to. This data could then be used by app developers to create new apps.
A week later, Apple revealed its health platform, called HealthKit. The platform connects to a user-facing app, called Health. HealthKit aggregates and stores data from connected devices and apps. Unlike Google Fit, which was announced at the end of June, Apple and Samsung's products aim to integrate with more health-related devices instead of just fitness.
“As health platforms support more ‘medical’ devices, rather than just today’s fitness trackers, they will usurp the territory occupied by chronic disease monitoring companies," Juniper Research Associate Analyst Anthony Cox said in a statement.
Earlier this month, a report from research firm Visiongain found the mobile health market is expected to be valued at $6.7 billion by the end of 2014. London-based Visiongain defines mobile health as “the practice of medicine and health services through mobile devices” and analyzed smartphone and tablet apps for its report. Apps included in the report range from free apps all the way to premium apps that have diagnostic features.
And in September, consulting firm Accenture reported that funding for digital health startups will reach $6.5 billion by the end of 2017, up from $3.5 billion in 2014. The firm then broke down the total funding for digital health startups to date, $10.2 billion, and found $2.9 billion, went into startups that were working on infrastructure issues, like interoperability and health analytics. Digital health startups that work on "engagement" offerings, which Accenture says includes wearable devices and incentive programs, received $2.6 billion. Telehealth services also raised $2.6 billion and remote patient monitoring raised $2.1 billion.
