Five Hot Vertical Markets

It's easy to understand why vertical markets are so hot: The degrees of specialization, industry-specific regulations and powerful customization features in operating systems, applications and hardware alike mean nice returns for the channel. Here are five of the hottest:

HOSPITALITY: After a business meeting at a New York hotel, a departing visitor almost did a face plant. The reason? During the course of the meeting, integrators were in the hallway delivering 37-inch, LG LCD-TVs. There were dozens and dozens of big-screen TVs standing outside each guest room, just waiting to be installed. Nobody was watching, either, as the installation was done a couple of rooms at a time. Were it not for the security cameras, the TVs would have made an attractive "parting gift." Hotels everywhere are in the midst of extreme digital makeovers. To that end, Ricoh, West Caldwell, N.J., earlier this year began shipping its wireless, "hot-spot" printer offering.

HEALTH CARE: On one issue alone—regulation compliance—health-care providers are in line to rely heavily on solution providers. As of May 23, smaller health-care facilities had to begin using a 10-digit National Provider Identifier on all billing claims, submissions and standard forms. Add to that reports that regulators have begun enforcing HIPAA violations with fines or other punishments, and this is a vertical that continues to see its work intertwined with vigorous IT solutions.

RETAIL: We like the story of Stratix, the Norcross, Ga., solution provider and Motorola partner that delivered a mobile, POS solution for Limited Brands that allowed its Victoria's Secret unit to take a mobile lingerie store on the road, sell products in different cities, and transmit sale data wirelessly from a lingerie-filled tour vehicle back to the home office. As retail businesses become more competitive, technology can provide customers with an edge that goes beyond low pricing.

SHIPPING/FREIGHT: A combination of bar-code technology, GPS tracking and advanced databases is transforming this vertical. The CRN Test Center examined GPS tracking solutions from BrickHouse Security, New York. The Test Center inserted a GPS device into a package, shipped it from Northern California to New York City, and tracked its progress in realtime on trucks and freight trains via Web-based mapping software—illustrating how advances in IT can be applied in new, value-added ways.

MEDIA: Trust us on this one. Companies expanding from print media to electronic and online media are finding themselves in greater need of bandwidth, content and multimedia management solutions. From the smallest local weekly newspaper or radio station to The New York Times, solutions that can help media companies expand into new horizons are worth their weight in gold ink.