Four major battles of the Internet of Things broke out in 2018

The concept of the Internet of Things (IoT) has been proposed for 19 years, but it was not until recent years that the gradual implementation of new technologies such as mobile Internet, cloud computing, big data, and artificial intelligence (AI) changed its previous tepid state, and even ignited four major battles in this field in 2018:

The battle over IoT data ownership

According to market research companies, the number of connected devices worldwide increased by 31% in 2016, which means that the amount of data generated by the Internet of Things is growing exponentially. In 2017, the Internet of Things and big data intersect with each other, and collecting, analyzing and understanding Internet of Things data has become the key, but only 1% of the Internet of Things data is actually used. This shows that there is still a large part of data that can create value for enterprises, but the question is who owns this data?

2018 will mark a new era for the IT industry - so it is important to understand who has access to this data, how it is used, and who owns it. And it is obviously crucial to determine which data is actually valuable and actionable to actually help drive impact on the bottom line.

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AI helps IoT security battle

In recent years, security incidents related to the Internet of Things have continued to rise. In the past few years, some serious IoT security vulnerabilities have been exposed, from the data leakage of Internet-connected plush toys to the concerns that artificial heart devices in the United States can be attacked, which have become real threats that attackers can achieve.

To avoid being caught off guard, it is clear that industries will take a more proactive approach in 2018 - including artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. Combining IoT data with AI and machine learning technologies is expected to enable the industry to predict and prevent attacks, further improving the protection capabilities of enterprise networks and endpoint devices.

The battle for IoT device interoperability

Statistics show that the number of IoT devices worldwide continued to grow in 2017, with purchases of smart TVs and digital set-top boxes soaring. As more and more devices become connected, there is a clear need for higher interoperability - especially as more and more users want to get a consistent experience across all the products they use.

Therefore, the question of how to integrate devices from different manufacturers will make interoperability a mainstream topic in 2018. But this will happen eventually, because there are standards such as the Open Connectivity Foundation for device-to-device interaction in smart home and enterprise applications, OPC UA in the industrial field, and OMA LwM2M for device management. The deployment of the above applications or firmware will facilitate IoT devices to speak a common language (or send and receive common data to each other). This will also drive greater demand for IoT platforms on which policies can be applied and actions can be automatically performed based on shared data.

The battle for low-power wide-area networks (LPWANs)

Since a large number of IoT devices are low-power products, they generally use very little data, so charging based on the amount of data used by each device does not make strategic sense. Instead, LPWANs will need to charge based on the business outcomes delivered, rather than the data used to deliver those outcomes.

So in 2018 we can expect to see the availability of low-power wide area networks making device connectivity more affordable and helping to increase adoption, but also creating urgency in the need for profitable business models for LPWAN.

Conclusion

It is foreseeable that in 2018, the automated connection of the Internet of Things, the efficient data management platform, and the flexible and stable network will become the important foundation for the value-added of IoT services. With the deepening of the concept of shared services and low-power wide area network technology, coupled with the active promotion of interoperability, artificial intelligence and machine learning, the transformation of business processes and services in various industries will be promoted. It is believed that with the continuous evolution of IoT technology, people will be more aware of the importance of seamless, reliable and fast data connection, as well as a new world of interconnected everything.