Timing is everything in retail, and Microsoft is betting the time is right for the Internet of Things (IoT) in the industry with the launch of new technology aimed squarely at restaurant operators, the result of several of the company’s partnerships.
Industry insiders are watching Microsoft carefully as the tech giant tries to find a solid foothold in the emerging IoT retail market. While the company believes IoT is the way forward, the question remains if the industry is ready for the infusion technology on the market.
"The retail sector witnessed the single biggest disruption with e-commerce and online retail," wrote Ajith Sankaran, senior vice president of market intelligence, Blueocean Market Intelligence, in an article for the Future of Commerce. "IoT has the potential to cause a similar disruption to the retail and e-commerce space, and can fundamentally alter the way the sector is operating today."
Microsoft is hoping to get in on the ground floor with products like the MICROS mTablet, the result of the company’s partnership with MICROS Systems. According to the companies, the mTablet offers restaurant managers the ability to view and analyze data from POS, mobile POS and industry tablet endpoints.
As a result, restaurant managers have a real-time view of restaurant wait lists and reservations, as well as sales and inventory data. Insights from this data have the potential to improve operations and deliver better customer service.
Microsoft partner MICROS introduced its mTablet E-Series for restaurants.
Another product line from Microsoft’s partnership with NEC includes POS stations, tablets and handheld terminals. The companies developed the system to enable restaurateurs to monitor data from multiple sources as well as update product and pricing information.
Microsoft also partnered with Dinerware on a POS application that was developed to provide insights from data collected from POS, mobile POS and tablets. According to the companies, the solution provides access to more than 80 real-time reports covering all aspects of business operation.
The IoT market is expected to grow to 26 billion installed units by 2020, according to research from Gartner. That translates into more than $300 billion in incremental revenue for IoT product and service suppliers by 2020.
Edited by
Rachel Ramsey
