The Internet of Things means different things to different people.

This is understandable, since there are aspects that impact people individually based on where they are and what they may be doing.

For example, home automation may impact a family while various forms of connectivity in a car are most visible to the person who drives a lot.

But it turns out that one of the most lucrative looking, at least for those providing IoT services, is in the area of consumer electronics, such as smart TVs and wearables, based on a new study.

Of course, terminology also remains an issue.

For example, more than half (56%) believe that M2M (machine to machine) and IoT mean the same things.

Of course, 45% say they don’t, according to the Telecoms Intelligence 2016 IoT Outlook study, which is based on a survey of 1,000 enablers of IoT, including service providers, cable operators, cloud service providers, hardware, software application developers, research firms and analysts. Job functions of those surveyed included marketing, sales and corporate management.

The least lucrative IoT area seen is related to connected cars and the second highest is in consumer electronics. Here are the segments seen as the most lucrative:

• 32% -- Industrial IoT (utilities, manufacturing, etc.)
• 28% -- Consumer electronics (devices, smart TVs, wearable technology, drones)
• 15% -- Home automation
• 15% -- Enterprise verticals (retail, finance)
• 10% -- Connected cars

For consumer IoT technology, the most potential is seen in the areas of smart homes. (The smart home of the future will be presented at the MediaPost IoT Marketing Forum Aug. 3 in New York.)

Here are the consumer IoT categories seen as having the most potential for those providing the products or services:

• 27% -- Smart home
• 17% -- Utility monitoring
• 15% -- Mobile
• 12% -- Connected cars
• 11% -- Healthcare
• 9% -- Commerce automation
• 7% -- Wearable technology
• 2% -- Entertainment

Another key is that mobile is seen as essential for all consumer-based IoT products.

For example, 88% of the audience said a companion app is absolutely essential for all consumer-based IoT products and 86% said consumers will expect a well-designed companion app even if a product doesn’t require one.

While some IoT products will capture more consumer attention than others, most at least will be seen or experienced.

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The MediaPost IoT Marketing Forum is being held Aug. 3 in New York. Check it out the agenda here