“No brand can do better than Apple in attracting consumers. And, no company has better resources and talent to design products that people want to use. The key is whether Apple will not only get the hardware/software piece right but also the right partnerships to help consumers with the motivational factors to positively change their health behaviors,” says Harry Wang, director of health and mobile product research at Parks Associates.

In addition to breakthrough wellness and fitness tracking functions, iWatch must garner partnerships with key healthcare industry stakeholders including providers and health insurers, argues Wang.

“Providers and health insurance companies have immense interest in a new device category like iWatch,” he asserts. “From a provider and insurer perspective, they are looking for long-term, sustainable behavior changes that can really get consumers on the right track so that they can benefit from a device like that. If they see the value there, they will work with Apple to achieve the goal. But, I think it’s too early to tell whether Apple can pull this off at this point.”

Consumers have a strong interest in leveraging wearable sensors to monitor their health and wellness. By 2016, Parks Associates predicts that more than 32 million U.S. consumers—about 10 percent of America’s population—will actively track their personal health and fitness online or via mobile platforms like Apple’s iWatch.

From the article "Success of Consumer-Based Apple Watch Tied to Healthcare Stakeholders" by Greg Slabodkin.

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