By Anton Le Saux, Head of Connectivity and Partner Sales at O2 Telefónica UK: The Internet of Things (IoT) and M2M are changing the way we live, work, shop and consume. They're making connections between business processes, people, data and technology.
Products and services are beginning to be powered by the data they collect. 'Things' will have a kind of intelligence - responding to our needs, servicing themselves and sharing information with other technologies. Businesses, of course, will also be able to harvest huge volumes of data from the machines and about our interactions with them.
Although M2M comes with security challenges the world's already adapting. Privacy-enhancing technology is being improved to protect sensitive data. Governments are updating regulations to protect personal information. And other members of the 'ecosystem' are taking action to keep us protected in this world of big data. New solutions will control bigger and more critical applications like home security systems.
The IoT is beginning to take shape around us, and there are various ways in which businesses can benefit from the IoT. It will help companies create new value streams and processes that accelerate time to market and enable a rapid response to customer needs. Organisations can capture more data about their processes and products to improve operational efficiency and increase customer loyalty.
What's more, the IoT will make it easier for organisations to see the business from one end of the supply chain to the other. Lastly, access to information from autonomous 'things' will enable organisations to make on-the-fly decisions on pricing, logistics, sales and support. It's becoming a question of when, not if, businesses will join the revolution.
(anton.lesaux@telefonica.com - partnersdigital.telefonica.com)