Intel, Vodafone Partnered on Connected Home Framework
Vodafone and Intel have decided to join forces through the combination of each others market solutions. They have announced their joint effort to accelerate Machine-to-Machine communication in and outside the home. Intel has promise to release and Atom-based developer’s kit that will make it easier for Consumer Electronic (CE) manufacturers and Independent Software Vendors (ISV) to develop solutions to facilitate easier M2M communication. As partner Vodafone will provide the network and connectivity services for the devices.
As individual entities both companies have been doing their part to enhance the digital lifestyle. It was last week that Vodafone debuts the Vodafone WebBox for markets were wired internet access is slow in reaching people. They have also rolling their Femtocell solutions across Europe, another connected home solution, geared towards reducing the bandwidth on the wireless infrastructure and clear communication for those in wireless dead spots.
Intel too is becoming a bigger player in the connected home solutions market and part of their imbedded internet strategy. Their family Atom processor are now a preferred system-on-chip solution for CE manufacturers developing connected home solutions. They have also release their Intel Home Dashboard, comprehensive home monitoring and control platform.
Through the new software framework new smart home appliances like the LG THINQ that are smart grid aware will find it easier to communicate with each other and for us to communicate with them using different devices. According to both companies the kit will combine Intel’s low-powered Atom processor with Vodafone's M2M mobile connectivity technology and will extend to include cars and other smart grid aware systems.
According to Vodafone's head of M2M, Erik Brenneis "Take-up has been partly held back by the complexity of installing and managing the technology." So their collaboration on this growing and exciting market should be good news for consumers, but with an estimated market value expecting to run into billions of pounds there will be competition and there are.
Soon after the Intel and Vodafone partnership was announced, Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom announced plans to develop M2M applications. As part of their partnership they will collaboration on: equipment standardisation, sharing each others network across Europe, M2M standards and Quality of Service (QoS) and technical cooperation on home media servers, connected cars technology and in-car infotainment services, content and technical enablers for TV and video services.
Another joint partnership on the way is between Nokia and ARM which sells more connected home solutions chips than Intel. Their joint effort is to get Nokia's Symbian mobile operating system into one suitable for embedded systems.