Sales of smartphones and tablets are set to rise in Romania, according to consultancy firm Deloitte. A new report from Deloitte on Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) in 2013 suggests that Romania will follow global trends for digital consumption. “When discussing local trends in the TMT industries, most are echoed in our global report. Experts expect continuous growth of the digital world, as sales of smartphones and tablets rise constantly, and convergence is the key-word for media and telecom operators,” said Manager Partner Deloitte Romania and Leader of the TMT industry group Ahmed Hassan.

Hassan also described Romanians as “TMT savvy,” and quick to embrace all new technologies. The report predicts that a record breaking one billion smartphones will be shipped in 2013. Other factors are highlighted for 2013, including challenges for advertisers in using smartphones and tablets. Deloitte's report suggests tablets can “borrow” content developed for PCs, while advising that advertisers create new material specifically for smartphones, such as interactive video content. The rewards could be big – USD 4.9 billion from smartphones and USD 3.4 billion from tablets in advertising revenues predicted for 2013.

The 2013 predictions also include a worrying statistic: 90 percent of user generated passwords vulnerable to hacking “within seconds.”

Long Term Evolution (LTE or 4G) is expected to take off this year. Deloitte expects the subscriber base to triple to 200 million and for 2013 ti be the first year when it thrives in multiple markets.

Despite the high and rising sales of smartphones and tablets, PCs will continue to dominate, according to Deloitte.

Liam Lever, liam@romania-insider.com