• support and control of the IoT capabilities infrastructure; and • offering IoT capabilities, including network capabilities and resources, to other providers8.Depending on the requirements of specific applications, there may be some degree of business integration between device, network, platform and application providers.3.3 Development trends and application areas The IoT sector has grown, sometimes unevenly, over the last 15 years9. Hardware developments have made these technologies available at the low cost, size and energy-consumption necessary. But many applications have been incremental improvements to existing business processes, developed by existing companies that can afford the required investments. At this stage, businesses specializing in IoT services may be needed to spur further growth and market-entry, along with further cost reductions, enabling the radical disruption of existing industries that many technology companies and consulting firms predict10.With near-field communication, smart phones can be a universal platform for individuals to interact with IoT objects, removing one of the main cost barriers to growth. Payment, ticketing, vouchers, and customer loyalty applications will become cheaper and easier to manage, allowing much greater sophistication in pricing, marketing, product management and analysis. One company has forecast that approximately USD 36.05 billion in NFC payments will be made worldwide in 2017, although this figure has declined by more than 40 per cent from previous forecasts, due to slower than expected growth11. 3.3.1 Uses of IoT in manufacturing and logistics So far, IoT technology has been used mostly in logistics and inventory management. Retailers can track products from the factory, through distribution networks – updating orders and routes in real time – to warehouses and into stores. IoT allows automatic replacement of stock when it is 72 Trends in Telecommunication Reform 2016 Figure 3.2: Smart cities Source: Libelium.