Augmented realities as an emerging technology offer new opportunities due to several shifting external conditions or changing forms of social interaction. In order to investigate possible impacts, trends and relationships the employed method is based on an environmental scanning and on several semi-structured interviews, conducted with several technology experts, researchers and futurologists. The process aims to obtain valuable information on competitors, markets, customers and suppliers as well as on macroeconomic factors, such as social, economic, technological and political factors. The main research findings afforded that AR can be seen as a new communication medium or tool in an early stage level due to several major technical and social challenges and that it goes along with the evolving information technology. These days one of the most promising devices for AR applications is the mobile phone, which could open the floodgates for the mass implementation of AR. With regard to the evolving ubiquity of information and interactivity through smart things and sensors, AR will provide customized-, perceptional-, and location-based information. Life and task enhancing services and applications are assigned big potential in future solutions, which could occur in many areas and industries. Due to an economical shift towards free business models, often financed by the advertisement industry, the future development of AR will certainly be affected.