A new IDC report predicts that 50% of government agencies that are engaging in “direct citizen engagement efforts” will put 25% of their program budgets towards IoT and third-platform technologies. IDC calls third-platform technologies the combination of mobile, social media, big data, and cloud computing. Citizen engagement efforts refers to government outreach to citizens for all types of services provided by municipalities. This could include services like waste management, utility usage, and public transportation.

Governments looking to improve quality of life and allocate resources more efficiently will look to IoT and third-platform technologies to improve communications and services they provide to their citizens, according to IDC.

The report maps out five stages of maturity for governments utilizing these technologies to improve citizen engagement and resource allocation, and identifies the most pressing challenges for governments as employee training and implementing learnings that come through IoT devices to better and more efficiently deliver services.