IoT and the Future of Networking

Google Home, the funny-looking device that plays music with voice commands, can now multitask, turning on lights in two rooms with one command.

Meanwhile, Amazon is opening its Alexa platform for third-party development, which will lead to its voice-activated device becoming a business tool. In the not-too-distant future, you’ll be greeted in an office by Alexa, which will direct you through artificial intelligence (AI) prompts and responses.

And if you hadn’t seen this: Verizon is planning on challenging cable providers with high-speed Wi-Fi service. Starting in three cities, Verizon will beam 5G data connectivity into homes, eliminating the need for cable drops and opening a new spectrum of competition.

What’s the significance of these announcements? They’re all part of the momentum that’s building around the Internet of Things, or IoT.

IoT means a lot of things to different people. That’s because it includes everything from smart appliances to industrial drones. Basically, though, IoT is the network of IP-enabled devices that connect to the Internet or interface with another Internet-connected device.

How many IoT devices are out there in the wild? Getting an accurate number is hard, but market analysts peg it at somewhere above 7 billion devices, not including smartphones, tablets, PCs, and conventional data center equipment such as servers and routers. By 2025, the number will climb to as many as 50 billion connected devices.

Think about that for a moment. Within the next seven years, we could have more than seven IP-enabled devices for every person on the planet. Even then, more will come.

IoT devices are little data-generating factories. On the surface, they’re interfaces for collecting or delivering information. In reality, though, that interface function means data generation. Every time someone uses an IoT device to turn on lights, measure roadway traffic, control room temperature, monitor a patient’s heart rate, or order laundry detergent, that device generates information for transmission, processing, and retention across multiple systems.

Some people believe technology innovation and evolution will eliminate the need for local networks. To the contrary, IoT and other emerging technologies such as AI, automation, and Big Data will make local networking more important. The focus may shift from conventional hardware to applications and services, but the true value is the intelligence derived from data passing over the Internet, cloud, and local networks.

Everyone wants data. Data is the fuel of business analysis, AI, and predictive analytics. Smart systems aren’t so smart if they’re purely reactive. We would lose interest in smart devices if they only told us things we already know. We want them to learn patterns and anticipate needs. They do that through continuous data collection and analysis.

For smart devices to work, we need more than just data and applications. We need reliable and secure connectivity. Networks – from LANs to the Internet – are the medium through which data traverses. We need robust infrastructure to make IoT and all of the related technologies possible.

From a channel perspective, vendors will need to rethink the role of their partners in making IoT a reality. Vendors need to do more than train their partners on new technologies; they also need to provide instruction on how the legacy technologies relate and depend on new innovations. Vendors need to provide reference architectures to show partners and their customers the importance of maintaining robust networks to enable IoT. And vendors need to arm their partners with the security tools and know-how to make IoT and its supporting networks resilient against attacks and disruptions.

IoT will usher in a new era of innovation, automation, and intelligence. But we can’t forget that IoT is built on the foundation of legacy networks. Our contemporary networks will continue to provide value far into the future as long as we properly maintain them.