Durban - Remember the internet connected fridge? Launched by LG in 2000, it was supposed to usher in a brave new world of “smart” home appliances, cheerfully chatting to their owners and each other over the web.
Nearly a decade-and-a-half later, that Internet of Things (or IoT for short) hasn’t materialised in any substantial way. Forecasting is a mug’s game, but I’ll go out on a limb and predict that we will look back at 2015 as the year that the IoT finally began to gain traction and entered the mainstream.
To put it another way, this will be the year the Internet of Things finally becomes a thing.
It’s not a complete thumb-suck on my part. The signs have been there for a while.
Last February, Google shelled out a whopping $3.2 billion (R37.6bn) for Nest Labs, makers of a smart thermostat and smoke detector.
Detractors thought Google was crazy to spend so much on a small, relatively niche product line. But a statement from the company at the time hinted at a more ambitious goal, with the Nest acquisition a big stepping stone along the way as it evolves from a pure search and advertising company into a major player in the wider technology and consumer arena.
“We expect that the acquisition will enhance Google’s suite of products and services and allow Nest to continue to innovate upon devices in the home, making them more useful, intuitive, and thoughtful,” the statement said.
Intuitive and thoughtful devices. Exactly the kind needed for the IoT.
Of course, web-linked home gadgets aren’t new. Some of you probably have a security camera or CCTV system at home or at work that you can monitor over the internet.
The problem with the current crop of smart appliances is that most won’t “talk” to appliances made by a competitor. For the IoT to truly take off and go mainstream, there needs to be widespread inter-connectivity. For that to happen we need common standards.
Which brings me to the second big pointer towards the IoT being just around the corner. In August, tech giant Samsung purchased home automation start-up, Smart Things, reportedly for $200m.
Smart Things lets you turn on your garden sprinklers, lights and air-conditioners – even your coffee machine – remotely. It’ll alert you via SMS when your front gate, a window or door is opened. And, crucially, its gadgets are compatible with a wide range of third party gizmos like thermostats, security cameras and a growing number of home appliances.
There were concerns, quickly denied at the time, that Samsung might use its muscle to shut down this openness and restrict Smart Things access to Samsung devices. Any doubts that might have remained were dispelled on Monday when Samsung head honcho BK Yoon committed the company to doing all in its power to foster an open IoT.
Giving the keynote address at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Yoon declared that by 2017, 90 percent of Samsung’s products would be IoT ready, with the ultimate aim to make all its gadgets and appliances able to communicate with each other and the outside world.
“It’s not science fiction anymore – it’s science fact. We are bringing the physical and digital world together… (to) revolutionise our lives,” Yoon said, adding that the company would invest more than $100m in accelerator programs to encourage developers to create newer and better IoT technologies.
Importantly, he called for a reciprocal commitment to openness from other companies, including competitors, to allow for collaboration and true inter-connectivity between products.
After a series of false dawns, the commitment of heavyweights Google and Samsung to an open IoT may be just the spur needed to nudge the concept from a flight of fancy into mainstream consumer reality.
You’ll know I’m right when your friends’ smart fridges start posting pictures of their contents on Pinterest and Instagram.
* Got any questions or comments? Contact me on Twitter @alanqcooper or e-mail [email protected]
Sunday Tribune