By 2020, smart mobile devices will include embedded biometric sensors as standard, according to research conducted by Acuity Market Intelligence, creating a US$33.3bn a year market for biometric products and services.

Authentication fees from 825bn biometrically secured payment and non-payment transactions will account for US$6.8bn of the total, the research found, while the inclusion of biometric sensors in 4.76bn biometrically enabled mobile devices will account for another US$6bn in annual revenues.

Four billion apps that make use of biometrics will be downloaded during the year, Acuity also predicts, generating revenue of US$20bn from a combination of direct purchases and software development fees.

“Biometrics are a natural fit for the smart mobile devices we hold onto nearly every waking hour,” says Maxine Most, principal of Acuity Market Intelligence.

“The explosion in the use of smart devices over the past five years along with anticipated growth over the next five, especially in developing economies where sub $100 smartphones have begun to alter the mobile landscape, will bring biometrics into the daily lives of half the global population.”