By Harnessing IoT and Energy Absorption Technology, babyark is Setting a New Standard in Car Seat Safety.

babyark, a tech company reimagining child safety, announced today the launch of the babyark convertible car seat at the 2023 Consumer Electronics Show (CES).

The car seat introduces a holistic approach to safety, focusing on both the materials it is made of and the technology that has been added to it. Developed by Shy Mindel, an aeronautical engineer turned parent, the seat is introducing a new standard of safety for children.

“I was surprised to learn that the most important people in our lives, our children, sit in safety seats primarily made out of plastic and Styrofoam,” said Shy Mindel, CEO of babyark. “While safety features for adults in vehicles have evolved dramatically over the past 10 years, child passenger safety technology has remained stagnant. babyark is approaching safety through the hardware, the actual seat, and the software, including the safety sensors that communicate with the app. The result is a car seat that takes a holistic approach to safety.”

Made of anticrash materials, the babyark energy absorption technology is built around a high strength steel SafeCoil shock-absorbing system that gently slows the seat’s forward momentum during a crash. Carbon fiber and D3O, the world’s most technologically-advanced impact absorbing polymer tested in extreme military applications, complement the babyark suite of safety solutions. In addition to top materials, the baybark smart seat uses IoT technology to supply caregivers with real time indications regarding child passenger safety at all times. With 14 sensors embedded in the base of the seat, it alerts the driver via the personal babyark app if the seat is installed correctly, if the child is buckled or if the child is forgotten in the vehicle. The app then provides instructions on how to ensure that everything is correct, giving caregivers the peace of mind that their child is safely in their seat on each and every drive. The app is available on Android and iOS.

“Car seats are a major source of anxiety for parents. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 59% of car seats are installed incorrectly,” said Yifat Ryce, Chief Marketing Officer of babyark and licensed CPST.

“Safety starts with installation, and the babyark app uses technology to simplify everything possible for caregivers, enabling them to do it right the first time and every time.”

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Vulnerable Things.com helps vendors prepare for IoT security regulations and assist security researchers with vulnerability reporting.

An online platform designed to help IoT vendors receive, assess, manage and mitigate vulnerability reports has been launched by the IoT Security Foundation (IoTSF).

Vulnerable Things.com aims to simplify the reporting and management of vulnerabilities whilst helping IoT vendors comply with new consumer IoT security standards and regulations.

As the first globally applicable standard for consumer IoT cybersecurity, the new ETSI EN 303 645 specification requires IoT vendors – which could include device manufacturers or importers/distributors – to publish a clear and transparent vulnerability disclosure policy; establish an internal vulnerability management procedure; make contact information for vulnerability reporting publicly available; and continually monitor for and identify security vulnerabilities within their products.

Governments around the world including in the UK, Australia, Singapore, Finland and the American states of California and Oregon have already published codes of practice, product labelling schemes or prepared legislation aligned to the standard. Implementing a means to accept vulnerability reports is a common feature of these initiatives. Without mechanisms to report, manage and resolve vulnerabilities – such as Co-ordinated Vulnerability Disclosure (CVD) – the security of consumer IoT products diminishes over time and the risk of attack or abuse increases.

John Moor, Managing Director of the IoT Security Foundation, said:

“Vulnerability management is such a fundamental element to IoT cyber-hygiene that it is no surprise that governments and regulators around the world are making this a mandatory requirement.”

“As a world leading expert authority on IoT security, IoTSF has published vulnerability disclosure best practices and industry status[1] reports. Our conclusions are that industry must do more to protect their customers and their own businesses. We therefore see the need to drive this vital security practice and aim to help make it as simple as possible with the launch of the Vulnerable Things platform – especially for the uninitiated and firms who may lack resources. The service brokers good communications between researchers and vendors and guides both through the process until complete.”

“We are piloting the service to test the likely demand and gain feedback for users.”

Vulnerabilities can put user safety and personal data at risk and could place an IoT vendor in breach of data protection regulations. Failure by a vendor to respond to a reported vulnerability, whether from a consumer or a specialist security researcher, could result in uncontrolled public disclosure of the vulnerability which would increase the risk of attacks by bad actors. Fixing a vulnerability promptly reduces risks to users, devices, networks and IoT manufacturers.

Matt Warman, the UK Government’s Digital Infrastructure Minister said:
“I welcome this new initiative to help industry improve the security of internet of things devices and boost our burgeoning digital economy while protecting people online. We want everyone to have confidence that the internet-connected products they are buying have stronger security and are working on legislation in this field to help make this a reality.”

VulnerableThings.com aims to provide an off-the-shelf, user-friendly vulnerability management tool and other valuable member resources including policy templates, issue resolution guidelines and a directory of specialist advisors to help IoT manufacturers prepare for emerging regulations and to maintain compliance. CVD must become an essential part of the culture of successful IoT vendors and needs to be understood and supported by a business’s board of directors, compliance officer, product managers, product development managers, product security, supply chain managers and public relations teams.

Manufacturers that subscribe to VulnerableThings will have access to a dashboard that will guide them through the vulnerability resolution process and facilitate communication with the reporter. Where a vulnerability is reported in a product from a vendor that hasn’t registered with the service, an alert will be sent to a public email address of the manufacturer who will then have the opportunity to securely access the details of the vulnerability report by coming to VulnerableThings.

Access to Vulnerable Things.com is available free until 31 January 2021. Subscribing to the service also provides access to professional support for co-ordinated disclosure announcements.

While vulnerabilities can be reported by any individual anonymously, by registering with VulnerableThings.com, security researchers are provided with a dashboard that allows them to monitor the progress towards resolving vulnerabilities they have reported to different manufacturers. Promoting dialogue between vendors and security researchers will contribute to the success of the IoT ecosystem.

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The European Commission today launched an antitrust competition inquiry into the sector of Internet of Things (IoT) for consumer-related products and services in the European Union.

The sector inquiry will focus on consumer-related products and services that are connected to a network and can be controlled at a distance, for example via a voice assistant or mobile device. These include smart home appliances and wearable devices. Knowledge about the market gained through the inquiry will contribute to the Commission’s enforcement of competition law in this sector.

Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy, said:
“The consumer Internet of Things is expected to grow significantly in the coming years and become commonplace in the daily lives of European consumers. Imagine a smart fridge making your grocery list, you pulling up that grocery list onto your smart device and order a delivery from a shop that sends the groceries to your door that unlocks automatically with a word. The possibilities seem endless.”

“But access to large amounts of user data appears to be the key for success in this sector, so we have to make sure that market players are not using their control over such data to distort competition, or otherwise close off these markets for competitors. This sector inquiry will help us better understand the nature and likely effects of the possible competition problems in this sector.”

Despite the relatively early stage of development of the sector for the Internet of Things for consumer-related products and services in the European Union, there are indications that certain company practices may structurally distort competition. In particular, there are indications relating to restrictions of data access and interoperability, as well as certain forms of self-preferencing and practices linked to the use of proprietary standards. Internet of Things ecosystems are often characterised by strong network effects and economies of scale, which might lead to the fast emergence of dominant digital ecosystems and gatekeepers and might present tipping risks.

Therefore, through this competition sector inquiry, the Commission will gather market information to better understand the nature, prevalence and effects of these potential competition issues, and to assess them in light of EU antitrust rules.

The sector inquiry will cover products such as wearable devices (e.g. smart watches or fitness trackers) and connected consumer devices used in the smart home context, such as fridges, washing machines, smart TVs, smart speakers and lighting systems. The sector inquiry will also collect information about the services available via smart devices, such as music and video streaming services and about the voice assistants used to access them.

If, after analysing the results, the Commission identified specific competition concerns, it could open case investigations to ensure compliance with EU rules on restrictive business practices and abuse of dominant market positions (Articles 101 and 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union – TFEU).

The inquiry complements other actions launched within the framework of the Commission’s digital strategy, in particular regulatory initiatives related to artificial intelligence (AI), data and digital platforms.

Next steps

In the coming weeks, the Commission will send requests for information to a range of players active in the Internet of Things for consumer-related products and services throughout the EU. The companies concerned may include, for example, smart device manufacturers, software developers and related service providers. Under EU antitrust rules the Commission can require companies and trade associations to supply information, documents or statements as part of a sector inquiry.

The Commission expects to publish a preliminary report on the replies for consultation in the spring of 2021. The final report would follow in the summer of 2022.

For further background, please see the sector inquiry website.

This sector inquiry follows a number of other antitrust sector inquiries carried out in recent years in fields including financial services, energy pharmaceuticals, and e-commerce. More information can be found on DG Competition’s sector inquiry website.

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Broader adoption of the Internet of Things (IoT) and enthusiasm for emerging technology will drive the U.S. consumer technology industry to $286.6 billion in retail revenues ($224 billion wholesale) in 2016, according to the Consumer Technology Association’s (CTA) semi-annual forecast.

The latest version of CTA’s industry report, U.S. Consumer Technology Sales and Forecasts, says sales of burgeoning tech products such as wearables, smart home devices and drones will deliver an increase of 1.3 percent over last year’s industry revenues.

Gary Shapiro, president and CEO, CTA, said:

“We’re in the midst of a critical transition period, as more IoT products offer the anytime/anywhere access and seamless experiences that today’s consumers want and need.”

“This is a pivotal point in consumer technology history, as emerging tech categories – virtual reality, voice-controlled digital assistants, drones – push the entire industry forward. And the value of these innovations goes far beyond entertainment – today’s technology is changing our lives for the better.”

The five largest categories of the tech industry, including smartphones, tablets, LCD televisions, laptops and desktop computers, will collectively contribute $114 billion – or 51 percent – to the tech industry’s revenue this year, and smartphones and TVs will be responsible for most of that growth in 2016. However, in 2017, for the first time in several years, these five categories combined will account for a little less than half of industry revenue.

CTA is the nation’s largest tech trade association, and its consensus forecast reflects U.S. factory sales to dealers for more than 300 tech products. The semi-annual report serves as a benchmark for the consumer technology industry, charting the size and growth of underlying categories.

Emerging Technology Categories:

• 4K Ultra High-Definition (4K UHD) ecosystem: 2016 will be a flagship year for 4K UHD TVs, driven in part by the market introduction of next-generation technologies like HDR. CTA expects shipments of 4K UHD displays will reach 15 million units (a 105 percent increase), and revenue will exceed $12.9 billion (a 69 percent increase). New to the market in 2016, 4K UHD Blu-ray players will further build the 4K UHD ecosystem with 700,000 units sold and $63 million in revenue.
• Wearables: Driven by the popularity of fitness activity trackers, unit sales of all wearables in 2016 are forecast to reach almost 48 million units (a 39 percent increase). Fitness activity tracker volumes will hit 28 million units in 2016 – a 60 percent increase from 2015 – with revenues reaching $2.2 billion – a 62 percent increase. After a year of strong growth, smartwatch unit growth is slowing, while revenue will decline for the first time. Units are expected to increase 15 percent to 12.2 million units, earning $2.8 billion in revenue, a decline of eight percent.
• Smart Home: CTA projects the smart home category – including smart thermostats, smart smoke and CO2 detectors, IP/Wi-Fi cameras, smart locks, smart home systems, and smart switches, dimmers and outlets – to reach 9.5 million units sold in 2016 (a 29 percent increase). Revenue will grow to $1.3 billion (a 24 percent jump).
• Drones: Drone sales are expected to reach record heights, topping 2.4 million units (up 112 percent from 2015) and $799 million in shipment revenues (an 80 percent increase from 2015). CTA’s forecast also delineates expected U.S. drone sales for units below and above 250 grams, the FAA’s threshold for mandatory drone registration, expected to reach 1.6 million units (below 250 grams) and 825,000 units (above 250 grams).
• Virtual Reality (VR): With several global tech leaders introducing VR headsets to the consumer market in 2016, CTA expects this to be the tech sector’s overwhelming leader in year-to-year growth. Unit sales will increase by 296 percent over last year, reaching 800,000 units sold. Total revenues are projected to reach $432 million, a 332 percent increase this year.
• Digital Assistant Devices: This is the first year the semi-annual CTA report has included projections for voice-activated device that provides a cloud-based artificial intelligence-powered virtual assistant, such as Amazon’s Echo. Sales are projected to reach 2.2 million units (up 32 percent) in 2016 and earn $392 million in revenue (increasing 32 percent).
• 3D Printing: Ever-expanding 3D printing capabilities will drive the sector’s unit sales growth to increase 56 percent from last year, to reach 171,000 units sold. Total revenues will reach $148 million, a 35 percent increase.

Maturing Sales Leaders

• Smartphones: CTA projects unit shipments to reach 183 million in 2016 (up five percent), while revenues will reach $55 billion (a four percent increase). As tremendous innovations in smartphone hardware over the past few years have lengthened the replacement cycle, 2017 will be the first year smartphones see a slight decline in unit sales and revenue.
• Televisions: The TV market will remain on par with 2015, with unit sales estimated to reach 39.7 million units in 2016 (down one percent) and revenues expected to reach $20 billion (a three percent increase). LCD TVs, the category leader, will contribute 38.8 million units (a one percent decline) and $19.2 billion (two percent growth). Key areas of growth are large screen sizes, 4K UHD and smart TV displays.
• Tablets: After momentous growth and widespread adoption over the past five years, tablet sales will decline again in 2016. CTA expects sales of 65 million units in 2016, a two percent decrease, and revenues of $19 billion, down five percent.
• Laptops: Unit shipments of laptops are expected to reach 25 million units in 2016, a six percent decrease. Revenues are expected to reach $15.8 billion, an eight percent drop.
• Desktops: Amid an accelerated decline, desktops are projected to sell seven million units (13 percent decrease), earning $4.6 billion in revenue (a 15 percent decrease).

“Technology is constantly and continuously reinventing itself, often cannibalizing its own growth before anything else does,” said Shawn DuBravac, Ph.D., chief economist, CTA. “The swath of emerging categories hitting the market in 2016 and the exponential growth of IoT are indelibly shaping the way we live our lives. How we use the internet, and the new products coming to market today, are changing who we are becoming.”

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Sales & Forecasts report shows 4K UHD TV, wearables, drones will see double digit growth in 2016.

The ever-expanding adoption and continued growth of innovations comprising the Internet of Things (IoT) will help lead the U.S. consumer technology industry to a record-setting $287 billion in retail revenues ($224 billion wholesale) in 2016, according to the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), formerly the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®. CTA unveiled the latest version of its semi-annual industry report, U.S. Consumer Technology Sales and Forecasts, on the eve of CES® 2016, the world’s gathering place for all who thrive on the business of consumer technology, running Jan. 6-9 in Las Vegas, NV.

Well-established technologies including smartphones, televisions and laptops will continue to drive U.S. retail revenues and lead to one percent industry growth in 2016. While these categories – together with tablets and desktops – account for 51 percent of the consumer tech industry’s revenue, the catalysts for industry growth are newer innovations such as wearables, virtual reality and drones.

“2016 will be another great year for consumers. As more products become connected, we’ll be able to manage our lives in ways that weren’t possible even just a few years ago,” said Gary Shapiro, president and CEO, Consumer Technology Association.

“The exponential growth of the IoT and the lightning-fast speed of innovation are key reasons we’ll see such strong growth across so many tech categories. Highly sophisticated technology is becoming more affordable and accessible – improving our safety, productivity and entertainment.”

While CTA forecasts overall industry growth in 2016, the strong household penetration of mature categories, such as tablets, televisions, PCs and laptops, and continued industry innovation are declining or slowing growth and placing pressure on margins for some manufacturers and retailers. For example, despite a projected 65 percent increase in revenue for Ultra High-Definition TVs in 2016, CTA expects revenue for the overall TV market to not increase this year.

“Aggressive competition, longer product replacement cycles and disruptive innovation replacing legacy products create financial challenges for segments of our industry,” noted Shapiro. “However, we believe newer categories, continuing innovation and improving economic conditions provide additional cause for industry optimism.”

CTA’s consensus forecast reflects U.S. factory sales to dealers and covers more than 300 tech products. The semi-annual report serves as a benchmark for the consumer technology industry, charting the size and growth of underlying categories.

IoT Drives Industry Growth

• Video and Audio: IoT connectivity is transforming core consumer tech categories. In video, smart TVs are projected to sell 27 million units in 2016, a 13 percent increase over 2015, and streaming media players will sell 15.8 million units (five percent increase). Connected speakers and wireless headphones are the standout categories in audio. Unit sales of Bluetooth/Airplay-capable speakers are expected to reach 17.4 million units in 2016 – a 40 percent increase – and $1.5 billion in revenue, while sales of wireless headphones will reach 3.9 million in unit sales (increasing 30 percent),and $623 million in revenue.
• Smart Home: CTA expects the smart home technology category – including smart thermostats, smart smoke and CO2 detectors, IP/Wi-Fi cameras, smart locks, smart home systems, and smart switches, dimmers and outlets – to reach 8.9 million units sold in 2016 (a 21 percent increase), with $1.2 billion in revenue.
• Wearables: Led by the popularity of fitness activity trackers and smart watches, unit sales among all wearables in 2016 are forecast to reach 38.4 million units. Fitness activity tracker volumes will hit 17.4 million units in 2016 – a 12 percent increase from 2015 – with revenues reaching $1.3 billion. Smart watches are expected to increase 28 percent to 13.6 million units, earning $3.7 billion in revenue, an increase of 22 percent.

Tech Sales Leaders

• Smartphones: As the dominant sales category in the industry, smartphone unit shipments are projected to reach 183 million this year, up five percent from 2015. Smartphone revenues will reach $55 billion in 2016, a four percent increase from last year.
• Tablets: After significant growth and wide adoption over the past five years, tablet sales will continue to decline in 2016. CTA projects unit sales to reach 60 million this year, a nine percent decrease from 2015. Revenues are expected to hit $18 billion, down 12 percent.
• Televisions: After a banner year of sales growth in 2015 that saw LCD TV shipments climb 10 percent to top 39 million units, the TV market should reach a steady state in 2016. CTA projects revenues will reach $19 billion for all TV sets and displays in 2016, on par with 2015, as volumes drop one percent to just under 40 million units. 2016 will be a phenomenal year for 4K Ultra High-Definition (UHD) TVs – driven in part by the market introduction of next-generation technologies – with shipments of 4K UHD displays projected to reach 13 million units (an 83 percent increase). CTA expects revenue from 4K UHD displays in 2016 to top $10 billion, marking a 65 percent increase.
• Laptops: Unit shipments of traditional laptops are estimated to reach 27.6 million units in 2016, a two percent increase over 2015. Increasing sales of 2-in-1 computers (including both convertible laptops and detachable tablets) will drive this category’s growth, with 11.7 million units sold in 2016 (48 percent growth over last year) and $8 billion in revenue.

Tech Sectors to Watch

• Drones: CTA expects U.S. sales of drones weighing more than 250 grams – the minimum for FAA-mandated registration – to reach one million units in 2016, a 145 percent increase from 2015’s total. When adding drones weighing 250 grams or less to those totals, the total forecast for 2016 drone sales tops 2.8 million units (up 149 percent from 2015) and $953 million in shipment revenues (a 115 percent increase from last year).
• Virtual Reality (VR): With several notable VR headsets coming to market in 2016, CTA expects unit sales to increase by 500 percent over last year, to reach 1.2 million units sold. Total revenues are projected to reach $540 million, a 440 percent increase.
• 3D Printing: An expanding diversity of 3D printing capabilities will drive the sector’s growth in 2016. CTA expects 3D printer sales to increase 64 percent from 2015, to reach 179,000 units sold, with total revenues of $152 million, a 38 percent increase.

“We are at a time when new tech categories can come out of seemingly nowhere and lead to disruption in the blink of an eye,” said Shawn DuBravac, Ph.D., chief economist and senior director of research, CTA. “Digitization is rapidly changing the landscape of our daily lives, and consumers are clearly choosing to infuse tech in all facets of their lives. As economic fundamentals improve – a strengthened labor market, solid consumer spending, lower energy prices – the tech industry’s bottom line will continue to surpass record unit and revenue levels in 2016.”

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Gemalto’s MIM and Subscription Management solution provide rapid mobile product deployment, worldwide, with a single design. Efficient manufacturing, streamlined supply chain and easy global product marketing.

Gemalto, the world leader in digital security, has been selected by Limmex, a Swiss provider of personal safety solutions, to enable M2M connectivity for a revolutionary emergency watch in a pilot project with leading mobile operator Swisscom. The Limmex watch supports people with particular care or security needs such as children, VIPs, lonely workers, the elderly or individuals with health problems by triggering an emergency call to friends or family at the push of a button.

Gemalto will provide its Cinterion MIM (Machine Identification Module) and LinqUs On-Demand Provisioning Service, which removes the need for manufacturers to create numerous device variants and profiles. This simplifies the manufacturing process as it enables the cellular connection of devices in a specific country after they have been deployed to consumers. In that way, it enables Limmex to deploy a single product design across multiple markets quickly and easily.

Limmex products look like traditional Swiss watches with the ability to trigger an emergency call by pressing the watch face. It features a built-in microphone and loudspeaker to enable communication with the defined emergency contact.

“We work with multiple operators, producing different product variants for each country and region we serve,” said Dr. Martin Reber, CEO for Limmex.

“With Gemalto’s solution, we can enjoy more efficient manufacturing, a streamlined supply chain, and the freedom to quickly and easily market our product worldwide.”

“Swisscom M2M is committed to assuring that customers such as Limmex have access to the products and support they need to grow their business,” stated Jaap Vossen, Acting Head of M2M at Swisscom.

“Through our M2M product portfolio and by working with partners such as Gemalto, we are able to deliver all of the tools necessary for our customers’ success, whether regionally or globally concentrated.”

Benoit Jouffrey, Vice President On-Demand Connectivity for Gemalto, said:

​”The compact form factor of the Gemalto MIM is ideal for space-constrained M2M applications and the consumer electronics sector.”

“Our flexible subscription management solution can be tailored to meet any customer’s specific deployment needs, and is particularly well suited to the truly global, highly mobile Limmex product.”

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Built-in Bluetooth smart sensors track parameters of athletic activities and report back to Nike+ applications and Web sites to convert that data into training information.

Do you pronate? Do you need to lengthen your stride? Are your splits negative? For years, your trusty running shoes have kept secrets about your training and what you could do to improve. Today, Nike’s much anticipated Bluetooth connected Nike+ Training shoe, the Nike Lunartr1+, and the Nike+ Basketball shoe, the Nike Hyperdunk+, are giving a voice to all the secrets your shoes have been keeping about you. Built-in Bluetooth smart sensors track how hard, fast, and often you train, and how high, quick, and hard you play, and report back to the popular Nike+ applications and Web sites to convert that data into training information. Thanks to Bluetooth, you now have a vocal training partner with you every step of the way.

While previous versions of Nike+ training systems included a proprietary in-shoe sensor pod, the new Nike+ Training and Nike+ Basketball shoes use Bluetooth technology, allowing the shoes to tap into a massive network of Bluetooth devices, rather than communicate back to just one device. This means Nike, and more importantly, its consumers, have the freedom of choice and can pair their Nike shoes with a wide range of Bluetooth Smart Ready hub devices. These will be the second and third products released this year from Nike implementing Bluetooth technology—the Nike+ FuelBand uses Bluetooth for its wireless connectivity as well.

Suke Jawanda, CMO, Bluetooth SIG, said:

“Bluetooth technology is changing the way manufacturers look at connectivity and the potential of their products.”

“Increasingly, Bluetooth technology is being used to allow billions of diverse products from countless manufacturers to speak the same language. This results in unmatched convenience for the consumer, flexibility for the product manufacturers, and now access for application developers.”

Bluetooth technology, a relative newcomer to the sports and fitness market, is quickly becoming the wireless solution of choice due to its ubiquity, performance, and low cost. Bluetooth is a royalty free standard technology. According to IMS Research, more than 60 million sports, fitness, and health monitoring devices with Bluetooth technology are expected to ship between 2010 and 2015. Industry leaders like Polar, HIOD Sports, Wahoo Fitness, and Nike are using Bluetooth technology to connect everything for their sports and fitness monitoring solutions.

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According to a new research report from Berg Insight, the number of shipped consumer M2M devices with cellular connectivity grew to 7.1 million worldwide in 2011, up from 6.4 million in the previous year.

The consumer electronics market has experienced an incredible growth during the digitalisation era in the last decade. Today, dedicated devices such as PNDs, digital cameras, handheld gaming consoles and PMPs are facing fierce competition from converged multipurpose devices such as smartphones and tablets. Mobility, connectivity and personalisation are three of the most important current trends within consumer electronics. Instant access to information, using social networks and consuming and sharing media are becoming important parts of people’s digital lifestyles. Due to maturing markets and stunted ARPU growth, mobile operators all over the world are showing increasing interest in the consumer electronics market. The growing desire for people to stay connected makes wireless consumer devices an opportunity for the telecom industry to expand their market beyond mobile handsets.

Consumer electronics has emerged as a new major application category for cellular M2M in the past years. Consumer M2M devices are neither classified as handsets, PCs, tablets nor traditional M2M devices.
The product category includes e-readers, portable media players, gaming consoles, digital cameras, digital photo frames, PNDs, traffic information devices, personal tracking devices, wellness & fitness devices and user programmable sensor devices. The reasons for cellular connectivity vary and are often a way to meet the needs for connected features introduced in multipurpose devices. Media and entertainment devices can offer instant distribution of digital content. Imaging devices enable instant media sharing on social networks and seamless usage of cloud storage services. Personal navigation devices and speed camera warning devices can provide users with real time traffic information and other dynamic online content. Personal tracking devices and wellness products enable remote monitoring of sensor statuses such as location, blood pressure and glucose levels. Fitness applications allow for mobility that often is a necessity in these types of products.

The market for consumer M2M devices is still in its early stage. Until now, the most connected device categories are e-readers, PNDs, digital photo frames and handheld gaming consoles such as the recently introduced Sony PlayStation Vita. Berg Insight estimates that total shipments of consumer M2M devices reached 7.1 million devices in 2011. Growing at a compound annual growth rate of 39.8 percent, the shipments are expected to reach 37.9 million devices in 2016. Berg Insight estimates that the number of connected M2M consumer devices reached 12.7 million at the end of 2011. Growing at a compound annual growth rate of 38.6 percent, the number of network connections from consumer M2M devices are expected to reach 65.0 million in 2016. E-readers, PNDs, digital cameras and handheld gaming consoles will then be the most common consumer M2M devices accounting for 45 percent, 32 percent, 8 percent and 6 percent respectively of the total number of connections.

North America is currently the most important market for consumer M2M devices and accounted for about 5 million of the total device shipments in 2011. The second largest market is Europe with 1.7 million device shipments followed by the rest of world with 0.5 million device shipments.
Berg Insight anticipates that North America will remain the largest region with a market share of 40 percent in 2016. Europe and the rest of world will account for 30 percent each of the connected device shipments in the same year.

Continuously decreasing prices of cellular modules and chipsets are key developments for growth in the connectivity market. The deployments of high-speed cellular networks such as HSPA+ and LTE on most markets are another important driver enabling bandwidth-hungry applications. The exploding sales of connected mobile broadband products such as tablets further illustrates the benefits of cellular connectivity and will increase the demand for other consumer M2M devices as well. The telecom industry is depending on multiple connections per user for growth but to make it attractive for consumers to have multiple devices with cellular connections, a great deal of business model innovation is required. In order for the consumer M2M market to take off, price on mobile data has to decrease and subscription fees for every single connection need to be lowered. Instead, more consumers would be willing to have multiple connections, which will allow for an increased total ARPU. Device vendors and network operators are also advised to focus on bundling compelling services and products that include the price of mobile data instead of marketing actual mobile data subscriptions.

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M2M data to increase telcos’ M2M non-connectivity revenue; consumer applications are natural extension of telcos’ core business

As machine to machine (M2M) applications widen in an increasingly connected society, telecommunication companies are looking to diversify their M2M offerings beyond what can easily become a commoditised connectivity. According to Frost & Sullivan M2M non connectivity revenue to total M2M revenue in Europe amounted to 3.0 per cent in 2010 and 4.2 percent in 2011. This proportion is expected to grow significantly to more than 20 per cent by 2017. Monetising M2M data will be one of the key drivers for such an aggressive growth forecast.

Consumer M2M applications – centered on small/portable consumer electronics devices such as e-readers and digital connected photo-frames – are the closest to telcos’ core capabilities of providing digital lifestyle services.

“2012 is expected to be a year when telcos will begin developing consumer M2M opportunities in addition to their current enterprise focus,” says Frost & Sullivan Senior Industry Analyst, Yiru Zhong.
“Companies with a strong consumer brand and deep consumer digital offering could most readily capture this approach.”

Though telcos in Europe are currently pursuing the immediate enterprise M2M opportunities in industries such as utilities, automotive, security/surveillance and healthcare, they do see market potential in consumer electronics due to wide adoption of smart connected devices. “In addition, this trend has a long growth path as more smart or connected devices become available in the future,” notes Yiru Zhong.
“There is also increased uptake of consumer-grade industrial devices such as personal home wellbeing/healthcare devices and personal navigation devices.”

Thanks to extended connectivity to these types of services, there will be an accumulation of M2M data about consumer usage. Integrating this data into the telcos overall customer analytics will contribute to service deployments and customer improvements. Furthermore, the telcos attempts at making sense of M2M data will provide a solid foundation for future deployments in a smart-cities context by shaping citizen’s digital lifestyle.

A consumer’s digital footprint provides a context that also helps telcos to further enhance their other consumer offerings, such as mobile advertising and location-based services. Moreover, with the relentless push to deploy contactless payments technology, such as near field communications (NFC), telcos can further solidify their mobile financial service offerings by combining them with consumer M2M applications.

However, telcos will have to address two issues to speed up market development. Firstly, they will need to upgrade their data analytics capabilities and data warehousing integrations. This is already being addressed though, particularly as M2M will also create significant volumes of usable data from a variety of different resources. The second obstacle is a suspicion of big brother society. Europe’s sensitivity to data privacy makes it difficult for the public to distinguish between an identified individual and an anonymous group of customer segment with similar characteristics.  Telcos can address this concern by always ensuring customer’s choice and consent.

Yiru Zhong says:

“To summarize, we believe that 2012 is a year when telcos will actively investigate consumer M2M applications and consider ways of utilizing the resultant M2M data to create a richer consumer offering befitting a digital society.”

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Jasper Wireless, the leading connected devices platform for machine-to-machine (M2M) and consumer electronics, today announced an agreement with NTT DOCOMO to wirelessly connect machine-to-machine (M2M) and consumer electronics devices across Japan.

The Jasper Wireless platform will provide DOCOMO with the applications and services necessary to accelerate market entry of new categories of connected devices on its network and profitably connect and manage a range of embedded wireless devices. Jasper Wireless’ ability extends to a variety of M2M connections including but not limited to telematics, consumer electronics and m-health.

Cindy Patterson, executive vice president, worldwide sales, Jasper Wireless said:

“The Japanese market has always been at the forefront of innovation in connected consumer electronics and advancements in the automotive industry – and DOCOMO has always been at the vanguard of commercializing new opportunities in mobile communications.”

“In working with DOCOMO, Jasper Wireless is partnering with not only the market leader in Japan, but also with an organization with a track record in opening up new markets. We’re delighted that DOCOMO has selected Jasper’s connected devices platform to deploy and manage their connected devices profitably and at scale.”

As consumer electronics and M2M devices come to market with embedded connectivity, market success depends on finding the right business models to service different verticals and consumers globally. Jasper Wireless has developed the applications and services that support highly flexible business models as well as the automation of operational processes, including custom device provisioning, instant activation, real-time diagnostic tools and detailed billing and usage reports, ensuring a superior out-of-box end-user experience.

NTT DOCOMO joins a growing list of other Jasper Wireless operator partners including AT&T, América Móvil, Telefónica, VimpelCom, KPN, SingTel, Telstra, Rogers, CSL and more.

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With typical download speeds up to 40 Mbps, the Telstra USB 4G provides on-the-go access to multiple bandwidth-heavy tasks without compromise

Sierra Wireless and Telstra today announced that the Telstra USB 4G mobile broadband modem (also known as the Sierra Wireless AirCard® 320U) is now available to Telstra and BigPond customers, providing laptop users with access to the newly launched Telstra 4G LTE network.

 
Rivaling wired broadband speeds, Telstra 4G allows customers to do more things simultaneously, like viewing online photos and checking email while downloading a favorite TV show.  Business customers can take the network with them, multitasking on-the-go and quickly accessing shared folders and applications on a virtual private network.

Telstra CEO David Thodey said Australians could now access one of the world’s most advanced mobile networks delivering some of the fastest mobile download and upload speeds available anywhere.

Mr. Thodey said:

“Today marks a new high-speed chapter in Australian mobile telecommunications. Telstra’s 4G network delivers mobile speeds scarcely imagined a decade ago, making it easier for people to connect with the things they need and love when on the move.”

“The superfast speeds mean consumers can download songs faster, get TV shows in minutes and do more things simultaneously. This is just the beginning. Telstra 4G will allow our mobile devices to perform even more advanced tasks and open the door to a host of innovative high-speed services that have yet to be conceived.”

Telstra 4G is available in the central business districts of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Hobart, Darwin and Canberra. 4G is also available from launch in more than 30 metropolitan and regional centres. Using the Telstra USB 4G mobile broadband modem, customers in 4G coverage areas can enjoy typical download speeds ranging from 2Mbps to 40Mbps* – up to ten times faster than 3G speeds currently claimed by other Australian telecommunications companies. Customers can also experience typical upload speeds of 1Mbps to 10Mbps – three times faster than previous generations of mobile broadband in Australia. These are some of the fastest mobile download and upload speeds available anywhere.

As well as supporting faster mobile speeds, Telstra 4G provides a more responsive internet connection. Network latency (the time it takes for data to travel from a PC to the internet and back) is around half that experienced on current 3G networks meaning real-time applications like video conferencing, internet gaming and cloud-hosted streaming services work better with less buffering and fewer interruptions.

“The new Telstra USB 4G and the Telstra 4G network provide Australians with the most advanced wireless technology currently available anywhere in the world,” said Jason Cohenour, CEO for Sierra Wireless. “We are very pleased to continue our longstanding collaboration with Telstra to launch the new Telstra USB 4G in Australia.”

The Telstra USB 4G features a thin, matchbook-style design that optimizes the dual-antenna placement for best performance, while including user-friendly details like an articulating and pivoting hinge that works with the widest possible array of laptop USB ports. Sierra Wireless also offers an external antenna for the device, which can improve reception in areas with lower signal strength.

Setup for the Telstra USB 4G is simple, with built-in support for both Microsoft Windows and Mac OS operating systems. Supporting software automatically installs directly from the device, meaning users can be up and running within minutes.

The BigPond USB 4G can be purchased by consumer customers for $0 (after rebate) on a range of new 24 month plans – including on a $49.95 per month plan with 4GB of data included each month over 24 months (min cost $1,198.80).

The Telstra USB 4G can be purchased by business customers on a range of plans including for $0 upfront on the $39 Telstra Mobile Broadband Standard Plan over 24 months (minimum total cost $936) with 4GB included data.

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Industry’s most compact LTE USB modem brings speeds as fast as 75 Megabits per second today and as fast as 100 Megabits per second in the future

Novatel Wireless, Inc., a provider of wireless broadband access solutions, and Bell today announced the launch of the 4G LTE Novatel Wireless U679 Turbo Stick (also known as the Ovation MC 679 USB modem) on Bell Mobility’s new 4G LTE network.

The 4G LTE Novatel Wireless U679 offers Bell Mobility customers in LTE coverage areas mobile Internet download speeds as fast as 75 Megabits per second (Mbps) with typical speeds ranging between 12 and 25 Mbps and up to 100 Mbps as the platform evolves.

“The desire to leverage the latest 4G LTE speeds on-the-go is a palpable and growing trend in many markets today,” said Rob Hadley, CMO, Novatel Wireless.

“We are proud to launch on Bell’s new 4G LTE network our cutting edge 4G LTE Novatel Wireless U679 Turbo Stick and believe Bell Mobility customers will applaud its speed, compact design and ease-of-use.”

The 4G LTE Novatel Wireless U679 – the slimmest and most compact 4G LTE USB modem on the market today – comes equipped with an internal MIMO receive antenna, for optimal performance when users need it most and is backwards compatible to both Dual Carrier HSPA+ networks offering speeds up to 42 Mbps (typical between 7 and 14 Mbps) or HSPA+ offering speeds up to 21 Mbps (typical between 3.5 and 8 Mbps).

Bell’s 4G LTE network is the first and only Canadian LTE network to offer customers Dual Carrier 42 Mbps speeds when outside of LTE coverage areas.

“Launching our new 4G LTE network in some of Canada’s most populous areas including the Waterloo region innovation hub and the country’s largest wireless market in the Toronto area, demonstrates Bell’s commitment to the continued growth of the country’s wireless ecosystem,” said Adel Bazerghi, Senior Vice President of Products at Bell Mobility.

“With award-winning innovation, proven performance and reliability associated with the Novatel Wireless design, we’re excited to introduce our customers to the 4G LTE Novatel Wireless U679 – delivering 4G LTE speeds in a small and efficient form factor.”

Compatible with both Windows® and Mac® operating systems, the easy to use plug-and-play 4G LTE Novatel Wireless U679 Turbo Stick is available at Bell stores and online for $59.95 on a three year term or for $199.95 with no term.

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Acquisition expands u-blox’ reach in the US CDMA wireless markets.

u‑blox, the Swiss positioning and wireless chip and module company, announces the acquisition of San Diego based Fusion Wireless, a provider of CDMA wireless modules for consumer and M2M applications in North America.

Thomas Seiler, u‑blox CEO, said:

“The acquisition of Fusion Wireless immediately gives u-blox new, cutting-edge wireless module products plus access to the huge embedded CDMA market in North America for both consumer and M2M applications.”

“It also expands our wireless module technology roadmap to cover all popular standards used in the Americas based on a layout-consistent form factor. This will allow our customers to easily adapt their products to match geographical requirements as well as overcome network coverage limitations.”

Key terms of the transaction include:

• Technology and modules in the area of CDMA wireless technology in several form factors
• Integration of the Fusion Wireless business into u-blox’ existing activities to leverage and further strengthen the mutual commercial activities as well as capitalize on technological synergies

CDMA2000 is a mobile telephone standard deployed extensively in the US, and has the highest number of subscribers. It includes high-speed data channels that are used for consumer devices such as notebooks and tablet computers, as well as lower data transmission rates for machine-to-machine applications such as remote metering, remote monitoring and control, fleet management, point-of-sales terminals and remote patient monitoring systems.

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ziTRAC 2000 tracker and emergency alert targeted at professionals and consumers

u-blox, the Swiss positioning and wireless chip and module company, has been chosen for global positioning and GSM wireless technologies by Daviscomms, an established OEM/ODM provider of advanced personal tracking devices. The EaziTRAC 2000 personal tracker integrates u-blox’ LEON GSM and AMY GPS modules.

The EaziTRAC 2000 is a pocket-size Personal Tracking and Emergency Alert Device targeted for civil defence, fire and police forces as well as for mass markets such as employees, hikers, children and the elderly where personnel safety, security and recovery is critical.

“Selecting u-blox as our wireless modem and GPS receiver provider made sense on many levels” said SK Chong, Executive Director of Daviscomms.

“u-blox provides complementary GPS/GSM technologies, as well as ultra-small SMT modules, low-power consumption and high sensitivity to give our personal tracking solutions their market-leading size and performance.”

“We are pleased that Daviscomms recognized the numerous design advantages of our tightly-coupled GPS and GSM module technologies” said Adrian Tan, General Manager of u-blox Asia.

“u-blox has invested significantly in the seamless interoperation of GPS and 2G/3G technologies to support precisely this type of compact, high-performance, mission-critical application.”

The EaziTRAC 2000 allows the device or user to be tracked or located on demand via SMS or Internet. It can also communicate via GPRS data, GSM voice (inbound and fixed outbound voice calls), and the POCSAG paging network. There is also a digital input and output port to communicate with other peripheral devices, and motion detector. It also supports remote Over-the-Air (OTA) device configuration.

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