By Anton Le Saux, Head of Connectivity and Partner Sales at O2 Telefónica UK: The m2m market is expanding rapidly and developing into unchartered territory with new sectors acknowledging the benefits and smaller businesses adopting the technology.
But it is partnerships that will facilitate the growth of m2m, because no single business could possibly have the knowledge or contacts to roll out m2m into all potential sectors. If partnerships are the future for the m2m market, then relevant companies need to be seeking like-minded affiliates to move forward with, not to mention a centralised portal or facilitator to co-ordinate them. O2's Global Partnership Programme (GPP) is an example of this approach, driving industry growth through a system that supports multiple businesses, allowing them to move forward symbiotically.
As more businesses come together to establish links, commonalities and trends are coming to the fore. m2m is becoming more intrinsically linked to business processes and revenue streams, and connected device data needs to be blended with enterprise IT systems to maximise its usefulness. In short, data generated by m2m systems is becoming less about monitoring and more about decision making and business direction. This is increasing the need for real-time data across all parts of a business, drawing from multiple connected devices.
With data coming from numerous locations, a central portal to manage and manipulate this information is required to bring all connectivity together at a single user-friendly point. Only established, streamlined partnerships will be able to successfully collate these different strands into a unified and useable solution.
For more information emailanton.lesaux@telefonica.com or visit partnersdigital.telefonica.com