How The Internet Of Things Will Improve The Future
The Internet of Things is so hot right now, but people struggle to crystallise exactly what benefits it will bring to people and businesses. Here, IoT guru Derek Roddy attempts to put the main plus-points into words.
The Internet of Things (IoT) is already affecting and improving our lives. The term has been re-hashed multiple times, with its most popular meaning focusing on smartphones and other consumer electronics; moving beyond that the real question is, what does IoT really mean for consumers, businesses and local government?
Current state of IoT
Gartner noted that there will be 2.6 billion connected devices by 2020. By 2017, about 40% of those connected devices within smart cities will be inside smart homes.
The UK government’s plans to invest £40m to develop applications for IoT and smart cities as part of the 2015 budget has sparked much debate around whether this investment is too little too late or if it’s a waste of budget, how essential it really is and how much can be achieved with it. The bottom line is that there is a definite demand in the space and change is inevitable; but are we ready for such a change?
The ‘real’ Internet of Things
The IoT value chain consists of devices that are both intelligent and connected; however, the ecosystem is far more complex than people may think. In order to deliver the real IoT, we need to dig deeper.
The point of IoT shouldn’t be if the home owners have x devices or how often they use a smart toothbrush; surely that could be of interest to marketers, but what would be vital for local authorities is data that can help them save funds and get their services to be more efficient. Integrated services need to go beyond connecting devices for the sake of connecting devices and make a real impact by offering real consumer and council benefits.
