Modern smart technology brings changes to European enterprises. Smart machines, devices and sensors interconnect and communicate with each other via the internet, creating smart environments called the Internet of Things (IoT) enabling increased automation and production processes that can analyse and diagnose issues independently.
In 2020, almost one-fifth (18%) of enterprises in the EU with more than 10 people employed used internet-connected devices or systems that can be monitored or controlled remotely via the internet. Large enterprises used these devices or systems to a larger extent (38%) compared with medium-sized enterprises (27%) and small enterprises (16%).
Devices or systems to optimise energy consumptions in the enterprise’s premises were the most popular in large enterprises: 21% of large enterprises used them. Among medium and small enterprises, devices or systems to track the movement of vehicles or products or to offer condition-based maintenance of vehicles were most commonly used: 12% of medium enterprises and 6% of small enterprises used them.
Source dataset: isoc_eb_iot
Among EU Member States, Czechia recorded the highest share of enterprises (44%; see footnote) that used internet-connected devices or systems with remote monitoring or control via the internet in 2020. Czechia was followed by Finland (40%), Austria (32%), Belgium (27%) and Malta (26%).
In contrast, less than 15% of enterprises in Hungary (14%), Portugal (13%), Bulgaria (12%), France (10%) and Romania (7%) used such internet-connected devices or systems last year.
Source dataset: isoc_eb_iot
For more information:
- Data comes from Community survey on ICT usage and e-commerce in enterprises and refer to all enterprises with at least 10 people employed (excl. financial sector). Further methodological information related to the survey can be found here.
- Czechia: Due to a wider scope used in the national questionnaire, data is less comparable with other countries. You can access Eurostat model questionnaires here.
- Greece: data not published due to low reliability
- Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg: data not available
- Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag is a device that can be applied to or incorporated into a product or an object and transmits data via radio waves.
- Internet provider (IP) tags use internet protocol, which is the communications protocol that provides an identification and location system for computers on networks and routes traffic across the Internet.
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