As we approach the end of the year, so next year’s predictions start. We’ll be offering our own mobile industry predictions in a special podcast later this month.

Meanwhile, market intelligence company International Data Corporation has been looking at the growing areas of mobile computing, cloud services, social networking and data analytics - and has made its own 2012 predictions.

Vodafone Global Enterprise, the business unit that manages the communications needs of Vodafone’s largest multinational customers, is acquiring European IT and communications consultancy Bluefish Communications Ltd in a deal worth around £3 million.

The acquisition will help Vodafone Global Enterprise create a new Unified Communications and Collaboration practice that’ll offer advice and guidance about mobile, fixed-line, IT and cloud-based services.

IP communications business BroadSoft has published a survey entitled ‘Mobile Enterprise of the Future’. 400 senior staff responsible for mobile and unified communications IT purchases at US and UK-based businesses were contacted about their company’s communications usage and its plans.

25% of these enterprise IT decision makers believe that desk phones will be replaced by mobile phones within two years.

Mark Bridge writes:

“Mobile operators track who you call. In other news, banks know how much money is in your account and utility companies know where you live.”

At the end of a week in which so-called ‘spyware’ on mobile phones had been creating headlines, this tweet from Benedict Evans offered an alternative perspective.

Last week, Nokia Siemens Networks announced plans for reorganisation, which involved massive cost savings and around 17,000 jobs being cut.

Business areas that aren’t consistent with the new strategy were “planned to be divested or managed for value”.