IoT is the future of successful Telecom
By: Tim Young
This issue of Pipeline is dedicated to exploring the future of devices, and I will admit that when I think of “devices,” I am very 20th Century in my initial perception of what we’re talking about. I think about handsets. Plain old phones. Smartphones if I’m feeling fancy. But of course these devices are only the very tip of the device iceberg (device-berg?) these days, as more and more everyday objects join the vaunted multitude of the Internet of Things (IoT).
But here’s the thing: the IoT really is the future of telecom. Really.
Connected Everything
There are countless use-cases emerging that demonstrate just how big IoT is getting and could get. The Globe and Mail did a nice rundown a little while back outlining some of the more promising features of a world of connected devices, from door locks to smoke detectors to urban stoplights.
Examples included LED streetlights in San Diego that only turn on when a pedestrian or vehicle approaches. The city replaced 3,000 old-style lamps with these new smarties and hopes to save $250,000 a year on electrical costs along the way. Even smarter streetlights are being tested in Britain for deployment in areas plagued by rowdy revelers. When sensors detect loud noises, the lamps turn on extra-bright and connected cameras beam video of the area to the cloud.
The use-cases go on and on: connected and autonomous cars; fitness trackers; medical devices; power generation and metering; agriculture.
Major Interest
But just because many objects can be connected doesn’t mean they will be. What matters even more than possible uses for the IoT is the willingness of businesses, governments, and other entities to climb aboard that train. And there’s good reason to think that’s a possibility.
Vodafone released the results of its most recent IoT market survey -- the IoT Barometer 2016 -- a few weeks ago. Through interviews with 1,100 executives from around the world, the report authors found that 76 percent of companies believe that IoT is “critical” for their success.
