Hype Or Opportunity? 4 Things Managed Service Providers Need To Consider About The Internet Of Things

By Jeff Rudolph, Partner — Technology Practice, Sikich LLP

In 2012, Chicago installed solar powered trash collectors in its central business district. Not only do the containers hold more trash because of the compactor, but built-in sensors expedite the process and alert the headquarters when they’re full. This greatly reduces the need for pick-ups, saving both fuel and labor costs. Philadelphia saved $900,000 using these compactors and went from 17 weekly pickups with 33 employees to five weekly pick-ups with nine employees. This scenario is the epitome of the “Internet of Things,” more commonly known as the IoT, where “things” talk to other “things” over the Internet.

In 2012, Cisco reported that the Internet had 8.7 billion things connected to it. By 2020, experts estimate that the Internet will have 26 billion to 50 billion things. To become part of the IoT, a thing must have a unique Internet address, an ability to communicate, and at least one sensor. With more than 26 billion things set to come on board soon, a new Internet addressing scheme was created since the former scheme — Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4) — was insufficient. Its successor, IPv6, is currently being rolled out, and it has a nearly infinite number of addresses.

Communication occurs through a variety of transports, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth as the most common. Sensors continue to grow smaller, cheaper, and more powerful — partially due to a technology known as sensor fusion.

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