This post also appears in sUAS News ‘The Market’
---
What a difference a year makes.
Last year at this time, I reflected back on the news and trends of the commercial drone markets of 2014 and wrote about the mixed state of affairs in the U.S. Back then, drones got considerable media hype and you would have thought that drones could do anything from guide your car in the wilderness, to save the planet from starvation. In reality, we were just beginning to see the very first FAA grants of regulatory exemptions for commercial activity—which was nothing more than filming on closed sets.
Contrast that with this year, one in which we’ve seen more than 2,500 Section 333 grants for all kinds of commercial activity and the press’s narrative that ‘drones are cool’ turned to ‘drones are a headache’. Even so, there’s more going on than just public consternation.
In this post, I’ll review what I think were the six most significant commercial market trends for drones in 2015 set in the context of movies and myths. Enjoy.
- Casino Royale: Venture Capital
In the 2006 movie Casino Royale, James Bond attempts to bankrupt a terrorist financier by beating him in a high-stakes poker game. The plot twists and the tournament culminates in a $115-million winning hand for Bond—who discovers later the woman he fell in love with has stolen the winnings.
Just how high is the game of drone investment? Continue reading here: http://droneanalyst.com/2015/12/08/commercial-drone-markets-2015-year-in-review/
Comments
Cheers. Thanks for reading.
Thanks for sharing, a great read!
Good article.
2016 is going to be a year when some of the Casino bettors limp out the door drunk.
At the same time, some fresh faces just may emerge and lock in niche parts of the market.
I think we will look back at 2015 with a "what were they all thinking?" kind of an attitude. We'll see soon enough.