Apple will face roadblocks if it plans to use drones for enhancing Maps

BII Drone

(BI Intelligence)

This story was delivered to BI Intelligence IoT Briefing subscribers. To learn more and subscribe, please click here.

Apple's rumored plans to use drones to bolster its Maps service could face obstacles from the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA), according to Recode.

The news reflects the idea that the biggest barrier to enterprise drone adoption, which is on the rise, continues to be regulation from local and national governments.

As it currently stands, the FAA prohibits drones from flying over airports and densely populated areas. It's possible for companies to request waivers to bypass these rules — Alphabet has done so, for example — but operators are then still only allowed to fly the drones on private property. That could pose a major problem for companies like Apple, which would need to seek numerous exemptions from the agency in order to map out urban centers across the US.

This is a high-profile example of some of the issues companies face trying to employ drones in the current regulatory environment. The FAA maintains authority over commercial and enterprise drones in the US. But as an increasingly large number of major companies like Apple hope to use drones to enhance their operations, products, and services, the agency might need to consider updating its policies. It's possible that shift could begin in 2018, when the expected release of commercial drone delivery policies could begin to change the regulatory environment around enterprise drone usage.

Drones turned the corner in 2015 to become a popular consumer device, while a framework for regulation that legitimizes drones in the US began to take shape. Technological and regulatory barriers still exist to further drone adoption.

Drone manufacturers and software providers are quickly developing technologies like geo-fencing and collision avoidance that will make flying drones safer. The accelerating pace of drone adoption is also pushing governments to create new regulations that balance safety and innovation.

Safer technology and better regulation will open up new applications for drones in the commercial sector, including drone delivery programs like Amazon’s Prime Air and Google’s Project Wing initiatives.

BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled a detailed drones report that forecasts sales revenues for consumer, enterprise, and military drones. It also projects the growth of drone shipments for consumers and enterprises.

The report details several of world’s major drone suppliers and examines trends in drone adoption among several leading industries. Finally, it examines the regulatory landscape in several markets and explains how technologies like obstacle avoidance and drone-to-drone communications will impact drone adoption.

Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:

• We project revenues from drones sales to top $12 billion in 2021, up from just over $8 billion last year.

• Shipments of consumer drones will more than quadruple over the next five years, fueled by increasing price competition and new technologies that make flying drones easier for beginners.

• Growth in the enterprise sector will outpace the consumer sector in both shipments and revenues as regulations open up new use cases in the US and EU, the two biggest potential markets for enterprise drones.

• Technologies like geo-fencing and collision avoidance will make flying drones safer and make regulators feel more comfortable with larger numbers of drones taking to the skies.

• Right now FAA regulations have limited commercial drones to a select few industries and applications like aerial surveying in the agriculture, mining, and oil and gas sectors.

• The military sector will continue to lead all other sectors in drone spending during our forecast period thanks to the high cost of military drones and the growing number of countries seeking to acquire them.

In full, the report:

• Compares drone adoption across the consumer, enterprise, and government sectors.

• Breaks down drone regulations across several key markets and explains how they’ve impacted adoption.

• Discusses popular use cases for drones in the enterprise sector, as well as nascent use case that are on the rise.

• Analyzes how different drone manufacturers are trying to differentiate their offerings with better hardware and software components.

• Explains how drone manufacturers are quickly enabling autonomous flight in their products that will be a major boon for drone adoption.

To get your copy of this invaluable guide, choose one of these options:

1. Subscribe to an ALL-ACCESS Membership with BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report AND over 100 other expertly researched deep-dive reports, subscriptions to all of our daily newsletters, and much more. >> START A MEMBERSHIP

2. Purchase the report and download it immediately from our research store. >> BUY THE REPORT

The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, you’ve given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of the world of drones.

More From Business Insider

• How drones will change the world in the next 5 years
  

• Drones may soon deliver medical supplies in Australia
  

• THE DRONES REPORT: Market forecasts, regulatory barriers, top vendors, and leading commercial applications