Samsung Electronics, Intel Corp., and Dell Inc. have banded together to create a new Internet of Things standard, ensuring there’s a common framework for how devices talk to each other.
Alongside chip makers Broadcom and Atmel, companies that have also signed onto the standard, the framework will address connectivity, security, and other aspects of smart household products, like burglar alarms, fridges, and light switches, writes Noel Randewich for Reuters and the Globe and Mail.
Essentially, the new standards, under the banner of the Open Interconnect Consortium, will go up against what’s on offer from AllSeen Alliance, backed by Qualcomm, LG Electronics, Sharp Corp., and a bevy of other heavyweights looking to cement their own smart device standards. Last week, Microsoft became the 51st member to join AllSeen Alliance.
That led Rob Chandhok, senior vice president of Qualcomm, to compare the two groups to what the Internet used to look like in the early 1990s, when online services were all compartmentalized and segregated from each other.
“It’s better for us to have an industry-wide shared platform than to be divided,” Chandhok said, in an interview with Reuters. “I don’t want to get to a ‘Prodigy and CompuServe’ of the Internet of Things.”
Still, Doug Fisher, general manage of Intel’s software and services group, said that wouldn’t be the case. The goal of the Open Interconnect Consortium is to tackle areas like security – an area where AllSeen hasn’t done as well, according to his standards group. Having two sets of incompatible standards isn’t the goal, he told Reuters.
“We’re not out to create that. We just think the industry has spoken and there’s this approach that’s needed,” Fisher said. “We’re certainly welcoming others to participate.”
Still, besides these two groups, Apple and Google are also building their own Internet of Things-related devices. In June, Apple announced HomeKit, which will help consumers control their lights and thermostats, while Google acquired Nest Labs in January to help establish itself in that space. Nest has since partnered with Whirlpool Corp. and LIFX, a lightbulb maker, to integrate its thermostats and smoke detectors with those companies’ products.
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