Academic institutions in the United States are spending more than $5 billion annually on wireless hardware, software, and services. And, according to new research, that figure will climb to $6.8 billion by 2014. According to a new report from Compass Intelligence, an IT consultancy and market research firm, this year alone, education institutions–both K-12 and higher ed–will spend $5.7 billion on wireless services and equipment, growing at a compound annual rate of 5.2 percent through 2014.