Digital Lifescapes

The automotive industry is transforming rapidly as it embraces new paradigms -- such as active safety, on-board automation and car sharing services. The onset of the Internet of Everything (IoE) has also created new applications for sensor data that can be applied toward the development of new business models. As an example, the Usage Based Insurance (UBI) subscriber base broke through the 10 million member barrier, mainly driven by the ongoing adoption of these offerings within the U.S. and Italy. While it's been a turning point for the market, many obstacles remain. According to the latest market study by ABI Research, fundamental UBI impediments include privacy concerns, low awareness and perceived value, lack of scalability of on-board diagnostics (OBD) approaches and unclear future business models. Market Development Challenges UBI first-mover profitability gains -- based on the self-selection of low-risk drivers -- will ultimately not be sustainable. The auto insuranc...

The Internet of Everything (IoE) is the next evolutionary stage of the Internet of Things (IoT). It's a concept that sees all manner of previously unconnected objects and processes being converged with the ones that are already online. According to the latest market study by ABI Research, this convergence of physical and digital domains is set to potentially disrupt individual organizations and entire industries. The IoE is being enabled by advancements with standardized, ultra-low-power wireless technologies -- such as Bluetooth and ZigBee -- which are enabling sensor and node implementations. Meanwhile, Wi-Fi and cellular connectivity serve as a backbone for transferring the collected data to the Cloud. ABI Research estimates that the volume of data captured by IoT-connected devices exceeded 200 exabytes in 2014. The annual total is forecast to grow seven-fold by the end of the decade, surpassing 1,600 exabytes -- or 1.6 zettabytes -- in 2020. "The data originating f...

The Global Networked Economy is entering the next phase of its ongoing evolution. Emerging phenomena, such as the Industrial Internet, will help to launch progressive applications that will require new market development leadership. The outlook for these upside opportunities are boundless. Imagine a highway where cars are able to safely navigate to their destinations without a driver. Imagine a home where an elderly patient’s health is closely monitored by her hospital physician. Imagine a city that significantly reduces waste through sensor-embedded water pipes, buildings, parking meters and more. These are no longer scenarios from a distant future -- they're happening today. Nearly 12 billion internet-connected devices will be in use worldwide by the end of 2014, according to the latest global market study by Strategy Analytics. That is equivalent to 1.7 devices for every person on the planet -- a ratio which will rise to 4.3 by 2020, when 33 billion devices will be in us...

Structural electronics (SE) is one of the most important technological developments of this century. It forms a key part of the dream -- formulated decades ago -- of computing disappearing into the fabric of society. It will become a component of the evolving Internet of Everything phenomenon. It also addresses a dream of Thomas Edison in 1880 -- that electricity should be made where it is needed. SE is often biomimetic -- it usefully imitates nature in ways not previously feasible. And, it's a rapidly growing multi-billion dollar business. Structural electronics involves electronic and/or electrical components and circuits that act as load-bearing, protective structures, replacing dumb structures such as vehicle bodies. According to the latest market study by IDTechEx , in the near future aircraft -- and later automobiles -- will have a nervous system like a human being, instantly alerting to touch and damage. Aircraft will have no passenger windows, instead displaying a m...

Imagine a world where all manner of electrical and electronic devices are connected together via a wireless link -- that's the Internet of Everything. The installed base of active wireless connected devices will exceed 16 billion in 2014, that's about 20 percent more than in 2013, according to the latest market study by ABI Research. Moreover, the number of devices will more than double from the current level, with 40.9 billion forecast for 2020. "The driving force behind the surge in connections is that usual buzzword suspect, the Internet of Things (IoT)," said Aapo Markkanen, principal analyst at ABI Research . If we look at this year’s installed base, smartphones, tablets, PCs, and other hub devices still represent 44 percent of the active total, but by the end of 2020 their share is likely to drop to 32 percent. In other words, 75 percent of the growth between today and the end of the decade will come from non-hub devices -- such as wireless sensor nodes ...

Having thoroughly researched the topic, IDTechEx has mapped the Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem, where things are collaborating with other things without human intervention at the time. These things have internet protocol (IP) addresses, micro-controllers for local data processing and they sometimes include sensors. The Internet of People (IoP) is very different -- a renaming of the world of smartphones and other internet-enabled personal electronics, it is maturing but adding wearable personal devices and new human interfaces. Thirdly, there are many other dedicated identification and sensor systems for things but these do not have IP addresses at the item level, using other data standards or proprietary systems. According to the  IDTechEx assessment, these are  NOT truly IoT as a result -- but some include them as part of the topic which leads to widely varying market forecasts. IDTechEx see two main application sets emerging for IoT – consumer application...

Massive technology-led disruption across all industries is moving everyone globally towards an Internet of Everything -- where into the 2020's, tens of millions of people will be connected by trillions of digital things and software applications. This evolution started in the 1970's that had specialized activities driven by proprietary equipment and mainframes, then increased productivity in the 1990's propelled by the advent of PC's and the internet, followed by bursts of disruption and innovation in 2010 onward -- through open-source cloud and mobility. Connected Living, according to the latest market study by Frost & Sullivan, is defined as a world in which people use many different devices to experience compelling new services that integrate video, voice, and data services to provide access and ubiquitous connectivity anytime and anywhere. "Mobility and cloud computing are two pillars of growth that has brought about significant changes in the ICT ind...

Are you ready for the next-generation of the global Internet? Are you prepared, as the world's governments and major industries all move forward to launch the coming wave of new innovations that will connect the previously unconnected? The Linux Foundation has announced the formation of the AllSeen Alliance . The group is described as a broad cross-industry consortium to advance the adoption and innovation within the Internet of Everything (IoE). The forward-looking IoE concept is based on the idea that devices, objects and systems can be connected in simple, transparent ways to enable the sharing of information via coordinated and intelligent operations. Since it's believed that no single company can achieve the level of interoperability required to support the IoE bold goals, a united cross-industry effort is needed to deliver new experiences to both consumers and businesses everywhere. The AllSeen Alliance looks to expand upon the notion of an Internet of Things (IoT...