m2m now magazine oct-dec 2011 edition

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TALKING HEADSM2M standardisation is of ‘utmost importance’ says Numerex’s CEO

TALKING HEADSM2M standardisation is of ‘utmost importance’ says Numerex’s CEO

FRAUD: AN EXPERT OPINIONAre Fraud & SecurityManagement matching M2M’sstellar growth?

TRANSPORT &TELEMATICSUrgent call for Transport Standards+‘Auto Cloud’? It’s the future of Vehicle Telematics!

M2M SERVICE PROVIDERSIs Connectivity being undervalued?

OPERATOR CASE STUDYThe Smart Grid challenges faced by Cable & Wireless Worldwide

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P R O F I T F R O M A W O R L D O F C O N N E C T E D D E V I C E S

M2M Now: ISSN 2046-5882

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2011

V O L U M E 1 I S S U E 4

CTIA SHOW REVIEW3-page San Diego report -M2M’s a hit at Enterprise& ApplicationsTM !

Read Our New Column: The Contract Hot List • 3 New Videos:Maingate’s CEO Interview • From Washington to Berlin: What’s On inM2M? • Satellite Brings the Hospital to You! • Product, Contract &Market News • For More News & Videos go to www.m2mnow.biz

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TRANSPORT &TELEMATICS

20

22

TALKING HEADS8

14

EXPERT OPINION:CONNECTIVITY

SMARTGRIDS

CONTENTS 3

COMMENT 4by the Editor, Jeremy Cowan.

If it’s going on, it’s going into M2M Now

MARKET NEWS 5Worldwide revenues, Deutsche Telekom, and Mexico

CONTRACT NEWS 6Singapore’s NFC roll-out, and Inmarsat terminals.

THE CONTRACT HOT LIST 6 Our unique New Column listing recent major contract announcements

PRODUCT NEWS 7Vodafone and partners go a bundle, Telit’s 169MHz wireless

M-Bus module, & ‘Smart Skin’

TALKING HEADS 8 Numerex’s CEO says Standardisation is imperative for M2M’s growth in 2012

EXPERT OPINION: FRAUD & SECURITY MANAGEMENT 11Growth in fraud could match M2M’s growth if we’re not careful, says Rui Paiva

EXPERT OPINION: TRANSPORT & TELEMATICS 12‘Auto-Cloud’ is the future of Vehicle Telematics, argues Dale Calder

TRANSPORT & TELEMATICS 14Steve Rogerson finds that, here too, progress is hampered by a lack of standardisation

CTIA REVIEW 17 M2M Now reports on CTIA Enterprise & Applications from San Diego’s show floor

EXPERT OPINION: CONNECTIVITY 20Is M2M Connectivity undervalued? asks Gwenn Larsson

SMART GRIDS 22Cable & Wireless Worldwide has faced challenges in developing a UK Smart Grid

VIDEO REVIEW 25M2M Now talks Exclusively to Baard Eilertsen, CEO of Swedish MVNO Maingate

CASE STUDY: TELEMEDICINE 26 Massimo Marcotulli on health care and monitoring trials in Italy and Afghanistan

M2M CONSUMERS RESEARCH 28New US research points out the consumer M2M applications with most appeal

THE BACK PAGE 30M2M by Numbers? Find out about the News you may be missing online!

CONTENTS

M2M Now November - December 2011 3CONTENTS

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Cover Photo: Stratton J Nicolaides,Chairman & CEO, Numerex

Numerex Corp (NASDAQ: NMRX) is a leading providerof machine-to-machine business services, technology, and

products used in the development and support of M2M solutions for the enterprise andgovernment markets worldwide. The company offers Numerex DNA® that includes hardwareand smart Devices, cellular and satellite Network services, and software Applications that aredelivered through Numerex FAST® (Foundation Application Software Technology). Customerstypically subscribe to device management, network, and application services through hostedplatforms. Business services enable the development of efficient, reliable, and secure solutionswhile simplifying and speeding up deployment through streamlined processes andcomprehensive integration services. Numerex is ISO 27001 information security-certified."Machines Trust Us®" represents the Company's focus on M2M data security, service reliability,and round-the-clock support of its customers' M2M solutions. www.numerex.com

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be copied, stored,published or in any way reproduced without the prior written consent ofthe Publisher.M2M Now is distributed free to selected named individuals worldwide whomeet the Publisher's terms of Circulation Control. If you would like to applyfor a regular free copy supplied at the Publisher's discretion visitwww.m2mnow.biz If you do not qualify for a free subscription, paidsubscriptions can be obtained. Subscriptions for 4 issues per year cost £48.00worldwide (or US$79 / !59) including post and packing. M2M Nowmagazine is published quarterly.

© WeKnow Media Ltd 2011

Send your News to the Editor:[email protected] • www.m2mnow.biz

Over the last few months M2M Now has been to San Diego, Californiaappearing at one of the world’s largest wireless events, CTIA Enterprise &ApplicationsTM (our 3-page report starts on page 17). And a few weekslater we were in Orlando, Florida where the TM Forum was holding itsannual Management World Americas bash. And M2M had a prominentrole at both these shows, like never before. Pause for a second andconsider that both events are broad-scale communications conferencesand expos; this is further evidence of growing end user demand for M2Mservices, and of changes in the scale, range and quality of M2M offerings.

If you doubt me, take a look at our News (pages 5-8) which opens with an upbeatreport from Machina Research, M2M Global Forecast & Analysis 2010-2020.

Down and dirty in the detailEncouraging as this is, we find that M2M Now readers want to know the detail. So, turn to pages 28-29 tounderstand the M2M consumer opportunity. Research by Market Strategies International will guide youon the relative strengths of M2M prospects in Health Monitoring, Home Energy Management, PropertySecurity & Tracking, People & Pet Security, and Mobile Banking. And the results may just surprise you. Ofcourse, there’s nothing better to guide you than the voice of experience, and on pages 26-27 we have areport from Massimo Marcotulli of Hughes Europe on satellite-based telemedicine and health monitoringtrials in Italy and Afghanistan.

In this issue there are also reports from Cable & Wireless Worldwide on Smart Utilities, news of our latest M2M videointerviews, ‘Auto-Cloud’ opinion from Axeda’s irrepressible founder, Dale Calder, and an independent report into thechallenges facing Transport & Telematics. Like I said, there’s a lot going on, so it’s going into M2M Now(www.m2mnow.biz).

Jeremy Cowan, Editor, M2M Now [email protected]: @jcm2m

COMMENT

M2M Now November - December 20114 COMMENT

EDITOR & PUBLISHERJeremy CowanTel: +44 (0) 1420 [email protected]

DIGITAL EDITORNathalie BisnarTel: +44 (0) 1732 [email protected]

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTORCherisse DraperTel: +44 (0) 1732 [email protected]

SALES MANAGERChris BeckTel: +44 (0) 1732 [email protected]

OPERATIONS & EVENTS DIRECTORCharlie BisnarTel: +44 (0) 1732 [email protected]

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PUBLISHED BYWeKnow Media Ltd.Suite 28, 30 Churchill Square,Kings Hill, West Malling,Kent ME19 4YU, UKTel: +44 (0) 1732 897646

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M2M Now is distributed free toselected named individualsworldwide who meet thePublisher's terms of CirculationControl. If you would like to applyfor a regular free copy supplied atthe Publisher's discretion visitwww.m2mnow.biz If you do notqualify for a free subscription, paidsubscriptions can be obtained.Subscriptions for 4 issues per yearcost £48.00 worldwide (or US$79/ !59) including post and packing.M2M Now magazine is publishedquarterly.

All rights reserved. No part of thispublication may be copied,stored, published or in any wayreproduced without the priorwritten consent of the Publisher

M2M Now: ISSN 2046-5882

© WeKnow Media Ltd 2011

Ann Hatchell,BridgewaterSystems

Tony Jackson,Director, Telecoms,Convergys SmartRevenue Solutions

Marie-Paule Odini,HP CMS

Fergus O'Reilly,Chief SolutionExpert, SAPConsume to Cash

Stuart Cochran,CTO, EvolvingSystems

Erik Brenneis,Head of VodafoneM2M

John Aalbers,CEO, Volubill

Jeremy Cowan

EDITORIAL ADVISORS

If it’s going on, it’sgoing into M2M NowIt seems ages since we spoke and a lot has happened in M2Mlately, with more growth to look forward to in 2012. How manymarkets can say that?

NEWS IN BRIEF I NEWS IN BRIEF I NEWS IN BRIEF I NEWS IN BRIEF I NEWS IN BRIEF I NEWS IN BRIEF I NEWS IN BRIEF

M2M Now November - December 2011 5

MARKET NEWS

www.orga-systems.com

Machina Research,global advisers onM2M and mobilebroadband, havepublished a report,M2M Global Forecast& Analysis 2010-20,analysing the global

opportunity for machine-to-machine (M2M)communications. The key findings are:

• Global M2M connections will increasefrom one billion at the end of 2010 to12 billion at the end of 2020, accountingfor half of all global data connections.Connections will be dominated by twosectors: consumer electronics (includingcameras, music players and TVs) andintelligent buildings (e.g. security andheating/ventilation/aircon systems).Between them they will account for over60% of the total. By 2020 Europe will bethe biggest region for M2M, accountingfor 28% of connections. The biggest single

markets will be in China and the US with21% and 20% respectively.

• Over 70% of M2M devices will beconnected by short-range technologies,mostly WiFi. Of the remainder, wirelesscellular technologies dominate. Whenconsidering solely cellular connections, themost important applications sectors areutilities (principally smart metering) andautomotive (including pay-as-you-driveinsurance, emergency/eCall, and security &tracking). At the end of 2010 M2Maccounted for 2% of cellular connections.By 2020 this will reach 19%, or 2.3 billionconnections.

• In terms of revenue, M2M will growfrom !91 billion in 2010 to !714 billion in2020, a compound annual growth rate(CAGR) of 22.9%. Europe is again forecastto be the dominant region, generatingrevenue of over !200 billion in 2020. TheUS is the largest individual country with

over !150 billion revenue, followed byChina with over !110 billion.

• The addressable revenue opportunity formobile network operators (MNOs) will be!210 billion in 2020, of which MachinaResearch expects MNOs to take !40 billionif they have an effective M2M strategy. Therevenue generated from playing the role ofbit-pipe will be !4 billion, reflecting smallM2M traffic levels.

Jim Morrish, the report’s author noted:“Much of the value of M2M lies in theproducts and services that are wrappedaround a connection, and in the value ofthat connection (rather than simply thetraffic). This is clearly a new business modelfor MNOs. Beyond that, in many verticalsthere are incumbent service providers, orothers with specific sector, or applicationspecific, expertise – the trick for MNOs willbe to partner with the right companies in away that brings value to both parties.”

M2M connections to hit 12bn worldwidein 2020, generating !714bn revenue

Deutsche Telekom has extended itsSoftware as a Service (SaaS) portfolio toinclude the SAP for Utilities system. Energyproviders, the housing sector, and meteroperators can now lease hardware andsoftware for all processes at a fixedmonthly price per meter. So for the firsttime Deutsche Telekom is offering thiscomprehensive range of services, fromreading consumption data through to billing,from a single source. The offering alsoincludes the SAP licence for the first time.

“We have now opened up our entire

process chain to energy providers underthe SaaS model,” explained GabrieleRiedmann de Trinidad, responsible forenergy business at Deutsche Telekom. “Ourcustomers get all their IT andcommunications technology from a singlesource at transparent prices and withoutthe need to invest.”

The SAP for utilities solution can, it is said,perform all key tasks, from energy datamanagement and billing, to marketcommunication when a customer decidesto swap providers, through to six-monthly

updates in line with the requirements ofGermany’s Federal Network Agency.

Deutsche Telekom adds SAP for Utilities to SaaS

Jim Morrish,MachinaResearch: MNOshave to engagewith others in thevalue chain

Mexico’s smart grid market ‘to reach US$8.3bn by 2020’

Mexico is poised to become amajor smart grid market over the

course of the next decade. So says a newreport from northeast group llc, Mexico SmartGrid: Market Forecast (2011–2020). Whiledeployments are still in the early and pilotstages, Mexico is said to have the coreconditions and government backing to create asignificant smart grid market in the latter halfof this decade.

With high non- technical distribution losses,unreliable grid infrastructure, and rapidlygrowing electricity demand — especially froman emerging middle class — Mexico facesmany of the same conditions driving smart griddevelopment throughout Latin America.

Mexico has been in close co-ordination withthe US on smart grid co-operation and is a

natural market for US vendors to enter. Thecountry has the potential to become a keymarket for wireless mesh communicationtechnologies popular in the US. There is alsostrong potential for powerline communication(PLC) technologies common in European andother countries.

AT&T opens up to application developers

AT&T is taking down the protective walls it hasbuilt over the years around its applicationsinfrastructure, and the operator is inviting appdevelopers to play with its Application ProgramInterfaces (APIs). While not a first — BT offeredits own software development kit (SDK) severalyears ago, and Vodafone opened up its APIswith Vodafone 360 – the scale of the carrier’sinitiative is unusual.

AT&T recently opened its network todevelopers from around the world with new

tools and services, establishing acollaborative infrastructure in whichdedicated project teams have directaccess to decision makers who canquickly make the right connections. Itis now setting up a new Silicon Valleyfacility (sponsored by Ericsson) andhas released a wireless appdeveloper’s tool kit in beta.

While app developers may beexpected to concentrateinitially on apps forsmartphones and otherwireless consumer devices,AT&T will be aware thatthis openness may alsobring new possibilitiesfor app developersin M2Mcommunications.

Deutsche Telekom extends its SaaSportfolio to include SAP for Utilities

M2M Now November - December 20116

CONTRACT NEWS

THE CONTRACT HOT LIST:

www.orga-systems.com

Gemalto, a leadingprovider of digitalsecurity services, hasbeen selected by IDA todeploy mobile NFCcontactless servicesacross Singapore. Thecompany will developand operate its TrustedServices Manager (TSM)system to securely deployand manage mobile NFC

services such as payment, ticketing, loyaltyand other wireless services like the smartposter which allows consumers to interactwith advertisements.

With Singapore’s three mobile operators allconnected to this interoperable NFCinfrastructure, banks, payment and serviceproviders will be able to deploy innovativemobile NFC services to all mobilesubscribers. This open, secure platform willalso encourage widespread participation by

businesses and service providers from wide-ranging industries to join the ecosystem tooffer more consumer services, includingmobile coupons, mobile tickets and productinformation.

The complete TSM operation will take placein a secure environment in Singapore,whereby end users’ data is provisionedconfidentially over-the-air to their devices. Theproject is expected to launch commerciallyto consumers from the middle of 2012.

Tan Teck Lee,Gemalto Asia

Singapore selects Gemalto’s Trusted ServicesManager for nationwide NFC roll-out

Inmarsat, the provider of global mobilesatellite communications services, hasselected Hughes Network Systems todevelop a new machine-to-machine (M2M)terminal for its BGAN service.

Hughes will develop the new 9502 BGANM2M terminal by building on its 9201-M2M platform. The BGAN M2M service willoffer an end-to-end IP data capability forreal-time applications including smart

metering, SCADA, monitoring and otherinfrastructure telemetry solutions. Plannedfor launch in Q1 2012, Inmarsat will targetthe low-cost M2M service at the utilities, oil& gas, and retail banking markets.

“We believe there is significant appetite ina number of markets globally for a low-coststable platform to support short-burst dataand the increased connectivity needed infixed monitoring applications,” said Drew

Brandy, Director of Land Services atInmarsat.

“A specific opportunity we will target is thesmart grid initiative in the energy sector,with its requirement for data connectivityand information sharing across widelydispersed infrastructures. But there are anumber of other markets with a similarneed for IP-based real-time cost-effectivevisibility across their operations.”

Inmarsat asks Hughes for BGAN M2M terminal

It's free to be included in The Contract Hot List (below), which shows the companies announcing recent contract wins or productdeployments. If your contract is not listed here just email the details to us now marked "Hot List" <[email protected]>

M2M Now Oct-Dec 2011

Vendor/Partners Client, Country Product / Service (Duration & Value) AwardedConvergys Telekom Deutschland, Germany Ends Phase 2, migration to Smart Revenue Solution with rating & billing manager 9.2011Cryptography Research Trident Microsystems, Inc., USA Integrates CryptoFirewall security technology into Trident’s TSC100 STB SoCs 9.2011Cryptography Research MStar Semiconductor, Inc., Taiwan Licenses CryptoFirewall security for its multimedia SoC set-top box chips 9.2011Entone, Inc Telekom Srbija, Serbia Chooses Amulet™ HD IPTV Receiver with digital video recorder (DVR) capabilities 9.2011Evolving Systems Unnamed wireless operator, Africa Upgrade order for DSA, supporting mobile broadband and number selection 9.2011Evolving Systems Tier 1 wireless carrier, Russia Implementing the Dynamic SIM Allocation™ (DSA) system 10.2011Gemalto IDA, Singapore To deploy mobile NFC contactless services across Singapore 10.2011Great Connection Etisalat, UAE Launches service for expecting parents to share ultrasound scans of their foetus 10.2011Huawei Wireless City Planning,Inc., Japan To deploy large scale LTE TDD-compatible AXGP commercial network 9.2011Hughes Network Systems Inmarsat, International New 9502 BGAN terminal for end-to-end IP data capability in real-time applications 10.2011JSJS Response Electronics Ltd, UK Supplier of intruder alarms takes delivery of its first home automation stocking order 10.2011KiddyTrack Sdn Bhd Maxis Bhd, Malaysia Partner to launch a GPS / GSM child locator product 11.2011Mix Telematics De Lijn, Belgium Installs bus and coach fleet management system for more than 1800 buses 10.2011Newtec SES, Luxembourg & Belgium Supplying next generation Ka-band terminals and hubs for satellite communications 8.2011O2 UK (Telefonica) Chargemaster, UK Providing M2M technology to connect UK network of electric vehicle charging stations 10.2011SCHAD BAUR, Germany SCADA system extends automated process control to ordinary mobile devices 11.2011Sierra Wireless GÖRLITZ AG, Germany Provides wireless connectivity for Ethernet / GPRS router connection to energy meters 10.2011SkyBitz® GP II Energy, Inc., USA Selects GLS asset tracking product for over 600 frac tanks and other equipment 11.2011Subex / Gantek Avea, Turkey Revenue Operations Centre (ROC) Partner Settlement solution 10.2011Telenor Connexion Amelti Development AS, Norway Embedded connectivity for manufacturer of fuel and emissions management systems 10.2011Telenor Connexion OnStream, UK 2-year collaboration to link mobile communications-based gas and electricity meters 10.2011Telenor Connexion Renault, France Chosen as European connectivity supplier for telematics on electric and fuel vehicles 11.2011TWSP ThingWorx, USA Selected as global reseller of the ThingWorx Connected Application Platform 10.2011

Key: AXGP = Advanced eXtended Global PlatformGPRS = General Packet Radio ServiceGPS = Global Positioning System

GSM = Global System for Mobile communicationsNFC = Near Field CommunicationsOSS = Operations Support System

ROC = Revenue Operation CentreSoCs = System on ChipsSTB = Set Top Box

NEWS UPDATE I NEWS UPDATE I NEWS UPDATE I NEWS UPDATE I NEWS UPDATE I NEWS UPDATE I NEWS UPDATE

US Air Force co-sponsors ‘smart skin’development for medical monitoring

The development of low power electronics anddevices that are wearable, epidermal, edible oreven implantable, dubbed ‘smart skin’, isbeing promoted by MC10 of Cambridge,Massachusetts. The use of implanted medicaldevices for long-term monitoring of medicalconditions presents a challenge in the searchfor a renewable power source. Such devicesneed a self-sufficient power source that doesnot interact with its surroundings, andbatteries are impractical due to their need forreplacement.

Smart skin is an “epidermal electronic system”developed with funding by the NationalScience Foundation and the US Air Force. Thedevice contains micro-circuitry such astransistors, sensors, transmitters and receivers

that can get wrinkled, are bendable andstretchable, just like real skin, yet allowingdamage-free function of all components.

The technology allows freedom of movement,avoiding the obtrusive, uncomfortable use ofadhesive tapes and wires to attach devices topeople. Smart skin is only 50 microns thick andlight enough to stay attached to real skinwithout glue or adhesive, through surfaceforces.

Power consumption is said to be so low thatno battery will be needed for mostapplications. The device can harvest energyfrom ambient sources, via miniaturised solarcells or the movements of its wearer.

The human body is an excellent source ofthermal as well as mechanical energy. Thermalgradients are present on the surface of theskin and may be used for external skin-

mounted sensors. Vibrational energyscavenging is also a viable source ofrenewable energy and devices poweredby the human heartbeat have beencreated. Electricity to powerimplanted medical devices can beharvested from the pulse of ablood vessel, a gentle breeze, orthe motion from walking.

www.orga-systems.com M2M Now November - December 2011 7

PRODUCT NEWS

Vodafone M2M islaunching a newbundled service with itspartners to helpbusinesses takeadvantage of M2Mservices. Working withCalAmp Corporation,Digi International, MCTechnologies and SierraWireless, themultinational wirelessnetwork operator willbecome a one-stop

shop for M2M terminals and managedconnectivity on a single contract.

Vodafone will provide a single point ofcontact for customers, from early conceptdevelopment to support for national and

multinational deployments of connectivityand terminals. By having one delivery ofVodafone’s global M2M SIM cards alreadyinserted into M2M terminals, the partnersare confident of reducing their customers’integration costs and effort.

With its partners Vodafone offers a broadrange of M2M terminals addressingcustomer needs from market entry GPRS-based terminals with serial interface rightup to high end, highly secured 3G-baseddevices with USB and Ethernet interfaces.One of CalAmp’s two business segments isWireless DataCom, which supports M2Mservices for utility, government andenterprise customers. Among otherservices, US-based Digi Internationalprovides smart, full-featured UMTS/HSPAgateways and routers.

Germany’s MC Technologies GmbH is asupplier of M2M terminals for GPRS andSMS-based applications, such as remotemaintenance and industrial controls. AndSierra Wireless of Canada is a leadingprovider of M2M wireless modules andterminals.

Marc Sauter, Head of Strategy at VodafoneM2M, told M2M Now: “This is a simplifiedsupply chain, with one contract foreverything globally. Second, we have pre-integrated and pre-tested the SIM card andsolution. Third, this partnership offerssimplified support and operations, withonly one number to call if you need. Finally,Vodafone has a Test & Innovation Centre(to) check that it works seamlessly withVodafone and partner networks.”

Marc Sauter,Vodafone M2M:Simplifiedsupply chain

Telit Wireless Solutions has launched a newmodule featuring wireless M-Bus transfertechnology. Working at 169MHz theME50-169 module is said to be suited forsmart gas, water, heating or electricity meters.These meters automatically transmitconsumption data to the utility companies,increasing the accuracy and transparencyof bills, offering better customer serviceand helping to improve energy efficiency.

Wireless M-Bus is a standardised radiotransfer technology for the remote readingof meters inside buildings. The data fromindividual meters is transferred to aconcentrator on site, which collates and

transfers it via GSM/GPRS to the supplycompanies. The ME50-169 modules arefully compatible with Telit’s gatewaysolution, the GG863-SR (Short Range),which integrates Short Range andGSM/GPRS capabilities.

The M-Bus modules with Land Grid Array(LGA) mounting technology are the firstproduct releases in the market with 25mWoutput power which assure extreme lowpower consumption, thereby meetingsmart metering power consumptionrequirements. In addition, the ME50-169 isequipped with an embedded low powerATMEL ATX microcontroller.

Energy-efficient wireless M-Bus module for 169MHz

Vodafone and partners launch global pre-integrated M2M bundles

Telit’s ME50-169 modules work in the169MHz band which offers better rangethan 868 or 433MHz

Smart skin: Nobattery is needed formost applications

TALKING HEADS

M2M Now: Are there any significanttechnological, business model or other barrierspreventing an explosion of M2M services?

Stratton J Nicolaides: Four elements have to be inplace in order for ‘hockey stick’ M2M growthpossibilities to become reality: technology, awareness,cost and usability. In consumer businesses, it oftenseems like usability – and specifically user experience –is the gating factor between the general availability ofa new technology and its explosive adoption. Apple,for example, has been fantastic at making technologyboth usable and desirable… and increasinglyaffordable as volumes grow.

Enterprise solutions, however, are different, and M2Mis the consummate example. M2M is all about theintelligent delivery of actionable information whichresults in increased efficiencies, or betterresponsiveness, or both.

M2M is at a fascinating inflection point today. Thetechnological underpinnings are all in place. Thedevice side of the business has little or no humanusability component, and the aggregation point –which happens on an application platform, typically inthe cloud somewhere – has well-establisheddashboard and notification capabilities.

Because M2M deployments are almost always ROI-driven, cost is, of course, a critical factor. That said,hardware and connectivity costs have come down

steeply over the past several years, which is great newsfor M2M. However, roaming charges for internationalservices remain high and inconsistent, particularlywhen roaming across various global networks.Regulations and restrictions pertaining to permanentroaming on global carrier networks as well asdisparate session rounding conventions contribute tofinancial risk in global M2M explosion. This bearswatching.

This leaves awareness. The biggest hurdle in massiveM2M services adoption is customer awareness andeducation. Customers are not yet fully aware of thecomplete spectrum of M2M opportunity, the positiveimpact it can have on a business’s core infrastructure,the financial efficiencies it can drive, and the low costof entry.

The industry needs to make a greater effort to educatecompanies about how utilising M2M technology canhave a positive impact on both financials andcustomer satisfaction. Working with an experiencedpartner like Numerex can make all the difference here,as each phase has distinct challenges ranging fromcode optimisation to device certification. BecauseNumerex is one of the few companies who canstreamline the development process by deliveringdevice management, network, and application servicesthrough its horizontal platforms - that can besubscribed to either separately or fully integrated - theproduct development cycle leading tocommercialisation becomes simplified and expedited.

M2M Now asks Stratton J Nicolaides, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief ExecutiveOfficer of Numerex, about the barriers to growth in M2M services and how services canbecome more widely usable for enterprise customers. As the CEO says, standardisation willbe of ‘utmost importance’ in 2012.

M2M standardisation is of ‘utmost importance’, says Numerex’s CEO

Stratton JNicolaides wasappointedChairman of theBoard ofNumerex inDecember 1999and has servedas its ChiefExecutive Officersince 2000,havingpreviously beenits ChiefOperatingOfficer.


M2M Now: Technological developments in M2Mare accelerating as service providers andequipment vendors invest in the market’sgrowing potential. But how can M2M services bemade more widely usable?

SJN: There are at least three levels of segmentation intoday’s M2M market, and all are important. Likemany technologies, in its initial emergence M2M wasdeployed in a few specific industries to make a verticalmarket more efficient or to offer specialised features.Wireless backup for the security market is one greatexample of this.

A broader M2M solutions market is in horizontalsolutions. A good example here would be assettracking. Numerex has a platform which takes locationinformation from both satellite and cellular trackingdevices and integrates the results into one user controlpanel where owners can monitor locations, set upalerts for unexpected movement, define geofences forexpected boundaries, and so on. This kind of fullyintegrated solution works across industries, equallyuseful for a state or government agency monitoring toensure that a roadside generator doesn’t get stolenand for a rural farmer who is keeping track of whereall of his combines are harvesting today.

The third M2M solutions market really underlieseverything: an M2M enablement platform. Numerexoffers a strong portfolio of fully integrated products,but the real key is in the underlying platform whichenables control of the network, management of theremote devices, and a common infrastructure fordiverse applications. Ultimately, it is the strength of anM2M platform that enables the creation of easilyconfigurable, rapidly deployable solutions forcustomers.

M2M Now: Will standardisation be importantin 2012?

SJN: Standardisation will be of utmost importance in2012, and critical to rapid industry growth. There’s noquestion that M2M is becoming the backbone oftoday’s worldwide business and that standards arebound to fuel its growth. Standards equate tointeroperability, flexibility and scale, and will, as aresult, accelerate M2M adoption.

Many organisations around the world are working onM2M standardisation. The centralwork done on the Internet ofThings (IoT) at the InternationalTelecommunication Union (ITU),a specialised agency of theUnited Nations,headquartered in Geneva,Switzerland, and the M2Mstandards being developedat the European StandardsTelecommunicationsInstitute (ETSI) and theTelecommunicationsIndustry Association(TIA) are examplesof such activity.

However, the Standards Development Organisations(SDOs) also recognise that collaboration is crucial inorder to avoid redundant or conflicting standards.M2M systems may differ from country to country inaddition to the specificities of the various marketverticals where M2M plays a key role. The simple factis that M2M standards are most conducive toeconomies of scale if they are compatible worldwide.Several international initiatives are currently underwayto promote a global coherent approach to M2Mstandardisation.

Numerex is very much involved in the developmentand direction of M2M standards. As a matter of fact,Numerex’s CTO, Dr Jeffrey O Smith, is the chair of TIA’sTR-50 Smart Device Communications EngineeringCommittee, and the chair of the Global StandardsCollaboration (GSC) M2M Standardisation Task Force(MSTF). This task force <http://bit.ly/ujPbwf> is aforum where information and ideas can be exchangedamong traditional and non-traditional standardsgroups in order to facilitate global coordination andharmonisation in M2M standardisation. GSC includesthe major SDOs of the world and supports the ITU.

M2M Now: Analysts are continually predicting abooming market in M2M services. But whichindustry verticals will see the best results in theshort term for corporate end users and M2Mproviders?

SJN: From our point of view, all of the verticals areinteresting… but several are exciting. Healthcare,supply chain, automotive, and home security &automation definitely have strong industry buzz.Healthcare applications are demonstrating growth inremote patient monitoring, pharmaceuticalmanagement and device telemetry. Supply chainapplications are expanding beyond the factories toinclude performance monitoring as well as GPS assettracking.


TALKING HEADS

"Several (industry

verticals) are

exciting. Healthcare,

supply chain,

automotive, and

home security &

automation have

strong industry

buzz.”


“Standards will

help the market

assist customers

faster by doing

things like

connecting an

increasing variety

of sensors into

devices quickly,

effectively and

securely.”

M2M Jargon Buster

ROI = Return onInvestment

In-vehicle diagnostics, remote maintenance and GPStracking are making automotive telematicsapplications increasingly powerful, and they arebecoming interoperable with consumer applications asthey monitor driver behavior patterns, allow vehicleaccess from smart devices and support in-vehicleentertainment. Home security & automation willencompass a digital lifestyle well beyond its safety andsecurity heritage with remote management andcontrol of home security, entertainment, energy andappliances as a routine expectation in the near future.

There is always a role for vertical solutions that aretailored specifically for an industry. From healthcare tomanufacturing to utilities – including smart grid – M2Msolutions can be created to fit a specific niche, acceleratingthe growth across a variety of specific markets.

M2M Now: Some M2M service providers arebuilding long-term partnerships and wide-ranging ecosystems to integrate disparate skills,technologies and devices. What is Numerex’sview of the best way forward?

SJN: We believe the best way forward includes arobust ecosystem of strong partners around the globe.There is no doubt that mobile network operators,specialised device manufacturers, and applicationdevelopers are critical parts of the M2M ecosystem.Numerex’s experience, our expertise, and all of ourinvestments in technical infrastructure have been builtto complement that ecosystem. We very much viewour company and its capabilities as the mortar thathelps to bind the individual building blocks together.And – to continue that analogy – we feel like we caneither help a customer to create the precise structurethat is needed for their unique business need or wecan support marketplaces with thoroughly architectedsolutions that we have already built.

Not even the best technology sells itself, however, andwe benefit from a strong and growing network ofdistribution partners and value-added resellers inaddition to our large strategic partners. There is nodoubt that successful teaming within the M2Mecosystem is the key to our success.

M2M Now: The integration of devices, platformsand gateways was once the biggest challenge inM2M, but are service providers now payingenough attention to securing, managing andbilling for the service data they obtain?How can services to end users beimproved?

SJN: The key to improvingservice to end users isstraightforward: deploying,managing and billing M2Mservices is easiest for the customerwhen using a single source providerfor a complete M2M solution.Like any new technology, there can bechallenges in developing a solution withso many moving parts. After the technicalrequirements and the business benefits are

well understood, Numerex M2M initiatives generallygo through a prototype-pilot-deployment cycle foreach project. There are many complexities in bothhardware – including selection, customisation,certification, and firmware development – andsoftware that take place. Service to end users is greatlyimproved when they can focus on deploying thesolution and the rest ‘just works’.

One of the biggest challenges for any technologylooking to ‘cross the chasm’ is to simplify theunderlying complexity and to deliver actionableinformation – securely and reliably – where it will dothe most good. That is the heart of what Numerex isdoing and why M2M has such a great future.

M2M Now: Business models in some areas ofM2M such as telehealth are evolving rapidly.What changes have Numerex noticed most, andwhich sectors still need to adapt to new businessdemands and how?

SJN: The M2M industry is evolving rapidly, so businessmodels are changing fast, too. The economics ofconnectivity and hardware are in flux, and even theunderlying wireless networks themselves are in a stateof transformation.

Add to this situation the fact that many of the playersare changing, as consolidation takes place and someof the larger players consider expanding their organicmarket offerings. The uncertainties inherent in thissituation could negatively impact the growth of M2M.

The key here is to remove complexity, eliminateuncertainty, and endeavour not to change thefundamental business models of our customers. Ourgoal must be to make their operations more efficientand structure the business model so that deployingM2M solutions is the easy decision that it should be.

That’s one of the many reasons why Numerex worksthrough different financial models, but we are seeinga significant increase in our managed services (ServiceBureau) relationships. We can deliver device, network

and application as anintegrated solution for a

fixed monthly fee. Thislets our customers scale

seamlessly, avoid largecapital start-up costs,

and have apredictable cost

basis for theirbusiness.

TALKING HEADS

M2M FRAUD & SECURIT Y MANAGEMENT

EXPERT OPINION

There are boundless fraud risks associated withEmbedded Mobile devices and their relevantapplications, processes and different business models.

Communication service providers are finding thattraditional security and fraud countermeasures arenot practical, because there are too many newdevices and configurations used in M2M.

What will be offered and who owns the risk?In recent years, the telecoms industry has alignedwith the financial services sector through to m-banking and m-commerce. Now with M2Mextending the range of new markets and businesspartners to vehicle manufacturers, insuranceproviders, utility and medical businesses andvending machine suppliers, the opportunity forfraud is widening.

Types of fraud and security attacksThe CSP will need to evaluate the level of risk byinitially defining some basic areas to be subjectedto a risk assessment. These include the radiointerface (communication path), provisioning,authentication (device & customer), actual productsecurity, attended/unattended devices, operationalcontrol, device management, privacy andconfidentiality of information.

For the core network protection, the security threatcould take the form of impersonation of devices,traffic tunneling between impersonated devices,and firewall misconfiguration specific to themodem, router or gateway or attacks against theradio network being committed by rogue devices.

On a more basic level, unattended embeddedmobile devices will often have their UniversalIntegrated Circuit Card (UICC) stolen. In SouthAfrica recently, fraudsters stole more than 400 SIMsand made calls costing thousands of dollars in asystematic and co-ordinated attack.

Application designers must even consider the threatfrom Denial of Services attacks. A distributed DoSattack on the emergency services, during a majorincident, is a high impact attack that woulddamage any CSP.

EM devices and applications collect masses ofinformation that could be “confidential andprivate”. Any wrongful disclosure will both blightthe CSP’s brand image and result in legal action.

Meanwhile, the boom in M2M will attract newdevice makers and app developers to the telecomsindustry who may not appreciate procedures orunderstand the risks – as happened with the newround of mobile providers.

Considerations for a successful riskmanagement strategyHaving considered potential risks, the CSP shouldconsider how to defend itself. Adapting existingFraud Management Systems (FMS) is an optionwhen there are expected usage profiles.

However, defences need to extend beyond thetraditional methods, by factoring in the way thedevices and services are provisioned and offered.For example, a CSP needs to detect tampering orphysical removal of a device. Location updates willensure integrity of the device. Which means that ifthe device is programmed to call in every X hoursor the cell ID changes, movement of a fixed devicecan be indicated.

SummaryCSPs can mitigate against losses and ensure fastdetection by continual review of processes. Staffmust be educated in new M2M fraud trends, andnew products and services assessed for fraud andsecurity weaknesses. In support of this, state of theart technology should be used to quickly raise alertsfor suspect activity.

The GSMA tells us to expect 500 million new connected devices in three years asthe machine-to-machine (M2M) market booms. The growth in fraud could be equallyrapid unless all the loopholes are closed.

Embedded Mobile (M2M): Fraud and security management

Rui Paiva, WeDoTechnologies,CEO

"In South Africa

recently, fraudsters

stole more than

400 SIMs and

made

calls costing

thousands of

dollars."


TRANSPORT & TELEMATICS

EXPERT OPINION


Is it your iPhone, iPad, Macbook Pro, or Apple TV?Or perhaps it is your PlayStation 3 or Nintendo Wii?While all of these products are good candidatesand are, in fact, much more powerful than thecomputer that put a man on the moon, they pale incomparison to our champion. The most powerfulcomputer that most of us own is sitting in ourdriveway – it’s our automobile.

The amazing car and truckVehicles today are amazing pieces of engineering.According to the IEE spectrum, the LockheedMartin F-22 Raptor, the top of the line US militaryaircraft has about 5.7 million lines of software codein it, while the Boeing 787 Dreamliner has 6.5million. A modern vehicle by contrast, has over 100million lines of code in it and executes on 70 to 100networked microprocessors.

Microprocessors control automotive subsystems asvaried as anti-lock braking systems (ABS), air bags,stability and traction control, mirrors, headlights,seats, climate control, security, entertainment,navigation, and engine performance – just to namea few. With all of this complexity, it is a testamentto the auto manufacturers that our vehicles evenmake it out of the garage.

Internet-enabledFurthermore, today’s vehicles are increasingly beingbuilt with GPS and cellular communications inside.According to analyst firm Berg Insight, there areover 36 million cellular-enabled vehicles on the roadtoday, with over 113 million expected by 2015 and— as quoted in Automotive Engineering Online— Thilo Koslowski, research vice president atGartner, predicts, “By 2016, the majority of userswill experience connectivity in their vehicles. Forpremium vehicles, the tipping point will occurearlier, probably around 2013.”

Proprietary and closedWith this explosion of connectivity and computingpower, one would think that the automobile wouldbe a hotbed of consumer and business innovation.Unfortunately, this is not the case.

Why? I contend simply that it is because thesesystems are closed off to developers. Much like thecomputing systems of the ’60s – yes, the 1960s –the entire computing environment of the car is aclosed system.

As an individual, I can’t go online, sign up for adeveloper programme, and start innovating. Thereis no app store. Everything that I want to do for mycar, or some would say “to” my car, requires metinkering with its hardware platform. I would needto go to my local auto aftermarket shop where theycould swap out the existing hardware or add newhardware, utilising the secret connectors deep inrecesses of my vehicle.

Think about it, what if you had to go to the GeniusBar at the local Apple store where they promptlytook your iPhone apart to add the latest version ofAngry Birds? That would be nuts! It seems,however, that is what happens in the currenttelematics industry – over and over again.

Telematics today – Powered bythe aftermarketThe telematics industry today is a substantialmarket in its own right. Global industry analystsestimate that the global commercial telematicsmarket alone will reach US$11.2 billion by 2015.The industry covers an amazingly complex array ofsolutions, including:

• Vehicle and Trailer Tracking• Cold Storage Management

Have you ever considered what is the most complex and powerful computer that youown? Dale Calder may be about to surprise you.

‘Auto Cloud’– The future of Vehicle Telematics

The author isDale Calder,founder ofAxedaCorporation


• Fleet Management• Mobile Workforce Management• Intelligent Vehicle Management Systems• Car Clubs• Mobile Entertainment• Wireless Vehicle Safety Communications• Emergency Warning System for Vehicles• Pay-as-you-Drive Insurance

The companies in these areas go through heroicmeasures to deliver solutions to the market. TakePay-as-you-Drive insurance. The companies in thatindustry have had to develop wireless modems thatplug into the on-board diagnostic (OBD) port(found under the steering wheel of most cars).

The effort involved in this activity alone issubstantial. Since the signals found on the OBDports are not always consistent, these companieshave had to test their hardware with every carwhere it could potentially be used. Meanwhile,because it represents another channel ofcommunication from the car, the car could nowhave two separate ways that it communicates withthe cloud. Of course, the consumer is the one whoultimately pays for this duplication.

Additionally, once a Pay-as-you-Drive company hasa successfully tested device, they now have to buildthe actual application and cloud infrastructurenecessary to make it functional – this is where thereal heavy lifting begins!

What’s missing?I recently bought a used BMW 645 CI; it’s beautiful,fast, and corners like it’s on rails. It is a wonderfulpiece of German engineering, with one notableexception; its iDrive user interface. BMW noblyattempted to put much of the car’s non-drivingfunctions under the iDrive system in order to cleanup the dash and simplify the driving experience.

For those of you that are not familiar with iDrive, itis a lot like a tablet computer mounted inside yourcar. You interact with it by using a small wheelmounted between the driver and passenger. Usingthis wheel, the driver can scroll through items on thescreen and select them by pushing the wheel down.

Unfortunately, the operating environment andapplications that you interact with are horrible andclunky, with no way of changing them. It is as ifsome ancient Greek artist had chiseled it from

marble. I have no hope of improvement, no hopeof smoothing out the glitches, no hope of buying abetter one from some clever company with greatuser interface designers. My car is stuck in a tar pitwhile the state of the art evolves around me.

By contrast, consider an iPhone. The iPhoneexposes the core features of the hardware throughan application programming interface, or API. Ifyou want to develop a racing game through theAPI you can access the hardware’s accelerometers.If you want to post high scores to the cloud, theiPhone’s built in communications enable that. Inshort, the iPhone contains a software layer thatenables third parties to write software that mixesand matches the phone’s inherent capabilities witha world of cloud-based services.

Give me something like that for my iDrive unit inmy BMW and I’ll pay for the airtime and the appsthat I consume. Think about how much better theconsumer experience would be if our cars actuallyevolved and became more capable each and everyyear that we owned them.

Telematics tomorrow - The ‘Auto Cloud’Vehicles are nothing but computer platforms withwheels. While I acknowledge that there are manyaspects of a vehicle that should be walled off toexternal developers (the control system for the ABSfalls into this category), all of the entertainment,climate control, location, fault and emergencycodes, and navigation should certainly be fair game.

Slowly, but surely, the automobile industry is seeingthe light. Ford has pioneered remote phoneintegration with its sync technology, while BMW isfollowing suit with the iPhone. It is even rumouredthat General Motors is working on embedding anAndroid computer within the automobile itself.

I am willing to contend that in the next 5 years, thetelematics industry will undergo a massivetransformation. The future of car telematics will befound in the solutions that leverage the automobileor truck’s own computing platform versus thethousands of add-on hardware components andstove pipe solutions that are available today.

This ‘Auto Cloud’ will transform the whole carenvironment and provide businesses with aplatform that they can utilise to open up a new eraof creativity and productivity.

The BMW 645 CI is beautiful and fast. But its iDriveoperating environment and apps are horrible and clunky,with no way of changing them.

“What if you hadto go to the GeniusBar at the localApple store wherethey took youriPhone apart toadd the latestversion of AngryBirds?”- Dale Calder,AxedaCorporation



One of the biggest challenges facing transportationand telematics operators over the coming years willbe in finding some sort of harmonisation for aworld that has a surplus of standards both in thedevices used and in the networks over whichinformation is carried. On top of that, it has towork with different data formats.

And while ETSI has been working hard tostandardise the base for an intelligent transportationsystem, it has been hampered by a lack of fundsand by car manufacturers determined to promoteand develop their own proprietary systems.

“It will be a big challenge for the industry,” saidClaus Giebert, product manager at Kontron,“because there are many different standards in

telematics for connectivity, plus there are all thenetwork standards.” Though he believes there willbe standardisation in the future, the difficulty forcompanies today is finding harmonisation betweenthe wide variety of short-range standards in a car orlorry – such as Bluetooth, Zigbee and hard wiredmethods – and the wide-scale wireless networks.

“In the car, you have quality of service requirementsin real time,” he said. “On the wireless network it isquite different where you have the turnaround timefor packets. There might be in the future somestandardisation, but you will always have thedifferent protocols on the wired and wireless sides.”

For example, he said in the back office of atransportation company they would be able to see

Transportation and telematics are seen as major applications for M2M technology,but progress is being hampered by a lack of standardisation. Steve Rogerson reports.

Road handling

Claus Giebert,Kontron: Bigchallenge for theindustry


“There is a need for a worldwide M2M standard, or atleast specific standards for each vertical market.”- Fabrizio Bozzarelli, Advantech

the location of a lorry and information aboutpeople on site.

“If you want to see additional devices in the lorry,such as mobile phones, or people working on dataor delivery notes in the back office, there is no realopen standard, so it all becomes complicated,” hesaid. “In the future, there will be some kind ofstandardisation on the types of data to betransferred as well as on how they are transferred.”

Intelligent transportation One hope to start the standardisation process forall kinds of transportation applications has been thework ETSI has been doing in its CVIS (CooperativeVehicle Infrastructure Systems) project to establishstandards for an intelligent transportation system,including car-to-car and car-to-infrastructurecommunications. This would allow, for example, acar that encounters, say, black ice to sendinformation automatically about where it is to allthe cars around.

There is, however, a classic chicken and eggsituation with this in that no driver is going to pay alarge amount of money for the technology if otherscars have not got the technology, because therewould be no point.

Realising this, ETSI has concentrated its trials onusing existing cellular technology and looking at away that information could be sent to the carsstraight away, providing an instant benefit for sucha system.

Technology, though, will still need to be built intothe vehicles so that the ABS and other parts of thecar can send and receives messages to the mobileSIM. There is also a security issue here, as guardsneed to be in place to stop people sending fakemessages to the network.

Once running, fleet management and telematicsservice providers will be able to use the system toimprove their services. There is though a snag, andthat is money.

“This has been piloted in the last year,” said HolgerLenz, head of business development at Cinterion.“The big question is how to deploy it and who will

pay for it. The pilot was supported by the EC(European Commisssion) and showed it worked butthe huge roll out is waiting for the business case.”

Some car manufacturers meanwhile have started tooffer their own proprietary systems.

Common system in doubt“The big goal of the EC was to establish a commonsystem independent of the car manufacturers,”said Lenz. “But because the large deployment costshave delayed this, the car manufacturers aredeveloping their own. It will all end up a mess. Thebig question is: How will they get out of this? Itmay have to be pushed by legislation.”

If this is successful, then the goal of an automatedtransport network, something once only in therealms of science fiction, may be nearer to reality.

“I remember the movie Minority Report, almost 10years ago, where in the future world there will beautomatically controlled traffic,” said FabrizioBozzarelli, business development manager forAdvantech.

“Do you remember the controlled vehicles throughwell-ordered traffic? I think this concept might havelooked incredible 10 years ago but now is not sofar away from the reality. Today the internet, cloudcomputing and a plethora of sensors are combininginto a popular technology of object managementthat is more and more familiar because M2Mtechnology is changing the way we experiencelife,” said Bozzarelli.

Integrating M2M’s three layersAn M2M application has three levels: the sensorlevel for collecting information; the network levelcontaining communications devices such as GPRSunits, Wifi access points and networking devicessuch as switches and routers; and the third level,the service and application layer in charge of dataanalysis. This layer involves the management ofservices and applications, and analyses the mass ofdata, intelligently controlling the objects andapplications of transportation systems.

“The services at the third level are very important,”said Bozzarelli. “They could include protocol

FabrizioBozzarelli,Advantech:Millions of newdevices, eachneeding an IPaddress

David Schmider,LPRS: Challengeof interferenceandenvironmentalblocking


translation, device data storage and management,complex event processing and location-basedservices with alerts and notification, datawarehousing and reporting. Many of these servicesare and will be cloud-based services.” The firstchallenge, he said, was to integrate the levelstogether. Then there is a need to move to IPv6technology to provide an identity for all the devicesand sensors.

“IPv4 is going to end because there are not enoughaddresses for the new devices,” he said. “M2M willintroduce millions of new devices and each willneed an IP address.” He too believes there is then aneed for a worldwide M2M standard, or at leastspecific standards for each vertical market.Otherwise, the risk is that progress in M2M will beslowed down.

“We are at the beginning when it comes tostandards,” he said. “The different companiestherefore need to work together in the vertical

fields. There will be cost savings if we can developreal standards.”

The other difficulty caused by the differentnetworks is one of interference and picking theright wireless standard for a particular situation. Forexample, a tracking device that works fine when atrailer is empty may have difficulties when it is full.

“An empty trailer and a loaded trailer are twodifferent things,” said David Schmider, technicaldirector with LPRS, “and the higher frequenciescan suffer greatly. The main challenge that mostdeveloping M2M systems face is interference andenvironmental blocking.”

In many ways, the problems M2M faces intransportation and telematics are not that differentfrom any new, growing industry. But with M2M,even the short-term growth looks very lucrative andthat could be seriously hampered without much-needed urgency in standardisation.

A development in existing telematicssystems that is being tried out byMAN Truck & Bus is giving out

instant feedback to help staffimprove driving skills. The existing

system will provide information about ajourney that can be reviewed with the

driver at a later date. It may show, say,that on a stretch of road the driver braked

heavily, but a few days later when this ispointed out to the driver, he or she might not

remember braking heavily or the circumstancesthat led to that.

“Now we talk to the driver about what they did,”said David Lester, department manager of fleet

management services at MAN Truck & Bus. “But itcould be a week later, and they cannot remember what

it was they did.”

So the company is testing out a real-time system with a boxin the car that uses green, amber and red lights. The green

light shines when everything is fine but if it detects inefficientdriving it will change to amber or red, so the driver has an

instant feedback.

MAN is also planning to install more rear- and forward-facingcameras so that there is a record of the moments leading up to an

incident. “The forward facings ones give the driver’s view,” said Lester,“so if there is an accident, we can see what happened.”


MAN is using technology to improve driver behaviour

Holger Lenz,Cinterion: Whowill pay?

CTIA REVIEW


When businesses incorporate mobile platforms,devices and applications into their plans, enterprisesacross all kinds of verticals find they can boost theircompetitiveness, enhance productivity, collaboratemore effectively, and improve the experience for theircustomer.

There were Pavilions at CTIA for cloud computing, m-commerce, wireless dealers, and even a Launch Pad, aswell as wireless health, and of course, M2M. Partnerevents also took place throughout the show andincluded:

• M2M's Integral Role in Enterprise Efficiency• Optimising M2M Services on CDMA2000 Networks

(by the CDMA Development Group)• Smart Energy – Exploring the Advances Beyond

Smart Grid (by Accenture), and• World Health Care Congress – How to Win Business

from the Major Purchasers of Health Care Services.

But with so much to see, M2M Now had to focus anddid so on news and developments around the Expo.

First multi-technology learningcentre in US higher education The Florida Atlantic University of Columbia,Maryland, unveiled the Tecore NetworksWireless Laboratory, its new College ofEngineering & Computer Science building.This new 97,000 sq ft (9,000 m2) "livinglearning laboratory" is said to be the first

academic building in Florida designed and built toLEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)Platinum level standards.

The Tecore lab includes a live mobile network used fordemonstration and testing purposes in the mostprevalent standards, including GSM and CDMA. It willenable students, faculty and representatives of majorcellular carriers to collaborate on education, researchand development of innovative new services, andapplications such as machine-to-machine (M2M) andmanaged access. In total, Tecore Networks donatedover US$1 million in equipment and endowments tofund research & development and general laboperational expenses.

"As the premier showcase in the State of Florida forthe latest innovations in sustainability, our 'living-

San Diego Convention Center played host to the Washington, DC-based CTIA fromOctober 11-13, 2011 as CTIA Enterprise & Applications™ rolled into town. Theassociation chose California for its annual conference and expo focused on themobile enterprise. And, once inside, no area had more of a buzz about it than wefound among the 22 exhibitors in the M2M Zone.

The low-down on M2Mfrom San Diego

“Each problem

solved remotely

saved an average of

US$2,000 and 8-12

hours of patient

treatment time.”

- John Keough,

Yankee Group

CTIA Report Sponsored by

www.wyless.com


learning laboratory' is the ideal environment foreducation and research in the technologies whichpower our economy and society," said Karl K Stevens,Dean of the College of Engineering & ComputerScience at FAU.

Founded in 1991 by FAU alumnus, Jay Salkini, TecoreNetworks is a global supplier of multi-technology 2G,3G and 4G mobile network infrastructure. Thecompany provides commercial carriers, governmentagencies and the armed forces with communicationssystems based on the GSM, CDMA, UMTS and LTEstandards.

Telenor Connexion celebrates expansionFollowing the company’s recent expansion in the USmarket, Telenor Connexion announced newcustomer agreements, among them that it has beenselected global supplier of embedded connectivity byAmelti, a manufacturer of industrial engine andvehicle fuel and emissions monitoring andmanagement systems. The premium M2M solution isintended for Amelti’s flagship SmartFeeder productline, an aftermarket product designed to reduce andtrack fuel consumption, automate additive dispensing,minimise emissions and provide fleet managementprovisioning.

The SmartFeeder fuel additive injection system isengineered to track diesel fuel usage, vehicle or vesselactivity and exhaust emissions – all in real-time! Theembedded connectivity and dedicated service portalfrom Telenor Connexion enables the SmartFeedersystems to be monitored and controlled remotely,allowing for automatic adjustment of fuel additivedosing to optimise engine performance and fueleconomy.

Telenor Connexion also emphasised its quality ofservice. The company works with its customers oncoverage planning for cost optimisation. Through its24/365 global service desk, solution managers andsales force, the provider probes the roaming partnersand notifies customers about possible networkproblems in advance. Its service portal tools allow forfull control of connected device status, location andperformance. Telenor Connexion also holdsmethodology and wireless service sessions with itscustomers to ensure sustainable and reliable M2Msolutions.

Alliance for Everything Everywhere Everything Everywhere, now styled as the UK’sbiggest communications company, unveiled apartnership with RACO Wireless, a leading M2Mpartner and enabler in the USA. The agreement willprovide RACO Wireless’ customers with access toEverything Everywhere’s network for their internationaloperations, in order to quickly and easily launch M2Mapplications throughout Europe.

The move is the first of a number of partnershipswhich underline Everything Everywhere’s intention tobe the partner of choice for companies looking to

extend their M2M services internationally.

In addition, Everything Everywhere has joined a servicealliance with France Telecom and DeutscheTelekom. The alliance is designed to offer EverythingEverywhere’s M2M customers, including RACOWireless customers, network access and highstandards of service right across Europe.

Marc Overton, Vice President Wholesale and M2M,Everything Everywhere said: “Our ambition to becomethe partner of choice in the M2M space is underlinedby our international partnership with RACO Wirelessand the addition of T-Mobile and France Telecom’sService Alliance. By working in partnership we are ableto provide businesses with a ‘one stop shop’ forinternational M2M capabilities.”

Everything Everywhere announced in March that itspartnership with RACO Wireless will soon allow itsown and RACO Wireless’ M2M customers to utilise anew multi-IMSI capability designed for cost-effectiveinternational M2M deployment. This solution will actas a local SIM when deployed in the US and UK,enabling M2M application providers to avoid highroaming charges and benefit from improved coverage.It has now been confirmed that the solution will beavailable in early 2012.

This partnership follows the recent launch of theEverything Everywhere M2M Management Platform, aswell as the announcement of a partnership withRedtail Telematics Ltd, to expand EverythingEverywhere’s M2M capabilities into new markets.

Quickstart Developer Kit A trio of companies launched the Quickstart DeveloperKit to accelerate the development, testing anddeployment of M2M applications. KORE Telematics,the world's largest wireless services providerspecialising in M2M communications, have partneredwith ClearConnex, a wireless embedded engineeringfirm, and Richardson RFPD, a global componentdistributor with expertise serving RF, wireless and M2Mmarkets,

Together, the companies can now deliver the criticalcomponents required by M2M application developersto develop and test a complete M2M solution.Developers can purchase a cellular module developerkit enhanced with ClearConnex's ClearCommsoftware agent and direct access to the KORE wirelessM2M network, all in one simple, integrated package.

"For the first time, we are making available acomprehensive program that streamlines andexpedites the path to market for M2M device andsolution providers," said Robert Metzler, EVP, sales andmarketing, KORE Telematics. "ClearConnex'sengineering solutions and software developmentplatform and Richardson RFPD's OEM distributionchannel, together with the KORE network, enablesdevelopers to accelerate the move from testing tocommercial deployment."

CTIA REVIEW

“The worldwide

smart grid market

will have grown

annually from about

US$20bn in 2010 to

almost $100bn by

2030.”

- Morgan Stanley

“By 2015, there will

be approximately

212 million smart

meter systems and

smart grid projects

installed worldwide.”

- ABI Research


www.wyless.com

M2M benefits bolster businesses Early adopters of M2M technology are often said to be surprisedby the wide range of benefits they accrue from their connecteddevices. So says Yankee Group analyst, John Keough. By thinkingcreatively about possible data use cases both internally andexternally, M2M development teams can more effectively promotesolutions to management and sell services to customers.

In a new report into M2M by Yankee Group, entitled M2MBenefits Bolster Businesses, Keough concluded that M2Mdeployments benefit both deploying enterprises and theircustomers. With M2M technology, both suppliers and end users

can expect operational improvements, fuel and energy savings,and new products and services.

He also asserted that M2M deployments can enhance servicemodels. For example, a customer who purchased a softwarecontract with its medical imaging equipment found that eachproblem solved remotely saved an average of US$2,000 and 8-12hours of patient treatment time.

In addition, Keough reported that M2M deployments providespeedy returns on investment. More often than not, M2Mdeployments are proving to be well worth their initial investments,often generating a full ROI within two years.



www.wyless.com

M2M enables social responsibility Telit Wireless Solutions, the North American technology arm ofTelit Communications PLC, announced that its cellular M2Mmodules are being incorporated into various applications withbenefits for society and the environment. This is being done byNew York City engineering, research and development firmGROUND Lab.

GROUND Lab is dedicated to creating technological solutions thataddress environmental and humanitarian challenges worldwide.According to its co-founder Benedetta Piantella, Telit M2Mmodules are integral to the success of several devices created bythe firm. These include open source tracking collars to helpconservationists protect the last 2,000 lions living in the wild inSouthern Kenya, and a portable networked device created inpartnership with UNICEF. The latter collects accurate, high-volumemedical data from the field in real time for diagnosis by healthfacilities in Uganda.

As a prelude to CTIA, Telit held its inaugural DevCon event in SanDiego, of which Wyless was a gold sponsor. Dan McDuffie,Wyless’s CEO, used CTIA to announce the latest version of Porthosthe company’s web-based management platform. The globalM2M managed services provider launched Porthos™ 2.0. Therelease reportedly delivers new features, faster performance and agreatly enhanced user experience.

“As the needs of our M2M customers have evolved, so has ourmanagement software. Talking to our customers and partners wasa crucial part of the design process for Porthos 2.0,” saidMcDuffie. “We have made dramatic improvements across theboard, with a focus on usability, speed and complete flexibility andcontrol.”

Among Porthos 2.0’s new features is a new user interface,redesigned to offer improved navigation and a cleaner, clearerinformation display. A redesigned activations and provisioningsystem enables ‘self-serve’ end user activations across multipleGSM and CDMA operators for enterprise partners.

Porthos’ alerting system now includes a geo-fencing feature thatcan trigger alerts or restrict usage when a wireless device movesbetween predefined geographical areas. And a new ‘auto-

upgrade’ feature moves connections onto a higher price planwhen usage exceeds preset thresholds.

The platform is available in several licensing models for largeenterprises and MNOs, and it is scalable to an unlimited numberof devices. The user experience has been improved whenaccessing Porthos from iPads, Android tablets and other mobiledevices. And finally, the API features have been further enhancedfor customers who integrate management functionality directlyinto their M2M applications.

Dan McDuffie said: "At this year's CTIA, though the show was onthe smaller side, we experienced one of the most strategic fewdays in the history of Wyless. During the lead up to CTIA we hadlaunched our Porthos 2.0 Management Platform and we receivedsome excellent coverage around this, both from analysts andindustry press. This culminated at the first annual Telit developersconference, where, in part thanks to the M2M Now article, weemerged as the company to do business with. At CTIA itself, thepace of meeting requests with both strategic partners andprospective customers far exceeded our expectations. And just afew weeks after the show, we announced our strategicrelationship with Maingate in Sweden.

"Wyless is well positioned towards leading the emergingmanaged services space and we're very happy about the increasedexposure we've been getting these past few months," he added.

CONNECTIVIT Y

EXPERT OPINION

More than 12 years ago Telenor started working tocreate a telematics solution with two Sweden basedcompanies – Volvo and Securitas Direct. Nobodyknew that in 2011, there would be thousands ofplayers in the industry vying for a piece of the M2Mpie. This naturally means that competition is growing,and prices are falling. But before I explore theeconomics of M2M further, I want to take a stepback and include a few more paragraphs about M2Min general to set the stage.

When Telenor Connexion was formed in 2008, wewanted to be the Nespresso of Nestlé and drive ourown market segment – and avoid the mistake ofbuilding the business based on the way the ‘old guys’would do it – that is, with typical telco principles.

Build a platform firstThe first thing we did was to build our ownconnectivity platform. This is pretty intuitive if youhave any experience delivering an M2M connectivityservice. A good example is that you can no longerhave a 01:00 – 05:00 hours maintenance windowbecause your customer base are machines, and thosemachines will not accept such a long window – norwith the frequency that most MNOs are takingadvantage of today.

Without a doubt, the industry needs dedicated M2Mconnectivity platforms – separate from theinfrastructure that is serving consumers. The platformwe built from 2008-2009 was sold to Ericsson in2011. I suppose that came as a surprise to theindustry as our platform was considered one of thefew dedicated to M2M and created a keydifferentiator for Telenor Connexion.

With more time, however, it became clear that theM2M industry would thrive on economies of scale,and Ericsson was better positioned to get that scaleon our platform than we were. Plus we have alwaysknown that it’s our experience and proactive serviceawareness that have separated us from the pack –and that we can hold onto that without owning theplatform. Just to be clear though, we have alwaysbelieved that a dedicated connectivity platform isparamount for ensuring a premium M2M service. Byselling to Ericsson we have not compromised on thatprinciple.

The economics of M2MNow I want to get back to the economics of M2M,and put a bit of emphasis on the title of this article.Lately, I have been talking to my analyst friends andgetting one question over and over – and theconclusion I draw is that M2M is being viewed as alow revenue business – because it’s being looked atfor ARPU per Machine/Vertical only. This is a strangeand unfair way of looking at the overall value of thisservice sector, and I can’t figure out why some peopleare doing this.

M2M connectivity and the services that surround itappear to be a new industry sector that is beingundervalued – and it’s the MNOs that are partially toblame. Some players in the market haven’tunderstood that they are giving away a service basedon the Mbytes or even kbytes being consumed,rather than valuing it on the level of service beingdelivered.

Telenor Connexion sees value pricing for M2Mconnectivity from a very different angle, which is

It’s not ‘new’ news to anyone in telecom that the market for M2M and telematicscommunication is growing, and growing quickly. It is hard to start off an article thesedays, though, without at least acknowledging the fact that we will have moremachines communicating with each other than humans in the coming years. This iswhy we see more and more mobile network operators (MNOs), service providers, andconsulting firms waking up to the fact that they need to understand this newindustry within telecommunications to take advantage of the growth.

Is M2M connectivitybeing undervalued?

The author isGwenn Larssonof TelenorConnexion

“Telenor Connexion

sells on the value

of the overall

package delivered.

We don’t even care

how much data the

application uses.”


again why Telenor Group set up an entirely separatecompany to grow their M2M business. We have allseen that the growth predictions for M2M are huge,but what many don’t see is that the service beingdelivered is something much more complex, service-rich, and business- and life-critical than a standardtelco Mbyte or per-minute offering for consumers orfor a SIM card placed in a Kindle. What do I mean?

Connectivity service providers like Telenor Connexionsell based on the value of the overall package thatwe deliver. We don’t even care how much data theapplication uses – as long as it’s not over a specified‘extra large’ threshold a month in a country wherewe provide the service in a roaming environment (i.e.outside our own networks). But this has not been aproblem, as today 98% of M2M applications use lessthan 2Mbyte per month!

Different valuesInstead we value things such as the complexity of thesolution, the type of coverage needed as it relates togeography and reliability, and the technical input wegive to ensure cooperation between the module andthe SIM. This list can go on and on, and we ensureour customers understand the value behind ouroffering.

We also put the highest value, first and foremost, onour pre- and post-sales services. Telenor Connexionoffers consulting based on more than 12 years ofworking from start to implementation in variousvertical industries – especially automotive, securityand smart metering. And in more recent years inasset management, and insurance telematics.

We also offer post sales service support – on a nerd-to-nerd level. Our service guys and gals don’t answerphones, they solve problems. They know that manyproblems that appear to be connectivity issues, aremore than likely an incompatibility or flaw in theapplication – especially in times of networkdisruption – which unfortunately does happen!

How much is it worth to the industry to ensure thatevery connectivity service provider has anunderstanding of the complications associated withM2M comms? If a security alarm doesn’t send asignal when it’s needed – lives could be lost. Wow, itsuddenly seems really critical for an alarm paneldevelopment engineer to consider how to best workwith the principles of wireless communication toensure his product works when needed. And thisentails much more than achieving ‘certification’in a lab.

With communications networks there are neverguarantees – but there are differences betweencommunications service delivery MNOs. An end-to-end SLA (service level agreement) isn’t going to savea life – but an end-to-end understanding of how toreduce downtime will! This value is something thatcan’t be built into a per Mbyte price model.

Tight industry co-operationI want to conclude that through work with theworld’s leading module partners like Cinterion,Sierra Wireless, and Telit we ensure tight co-operation for future M2M growth. On top of that weare part of the GSMA initiative for Embedded MobileDevices.

Our customers value the experience, and the know-how for delivering a future-proof connectivitysolution. Place on top of that other Value AddedServices (VAS) – such as security checkpoints, andconsumer payment solutions – and the overall valuecontinues to add up.

Telenor is ready for the growth of M2M, and wemost definitely want to make sure that this importantindustry sector is not being undervalued. But it’s upto us and other service providers to get others tounderstand that!

“We also offer

post sales service

support – on a

nerd-to-nerd level.

Our service guys

and gals don’t

answer phones,

they solve

problems.”


SMART GRIDS

Whenever the subject of the smart grid comes up,‘don’t play with electricity’ jumps to the forefrontof my mind. Whoever I speak to, we all seem to betalking about – for want of a better engineeringterm – sticking a rather large screwdriver right intothe middle of the power network. And when thatparticular network happens to be the UK powergrid, that’s something that shouldn’t be takenlightly. One reassurance is that the thinkingsurrounding the smart grid has long been in the

pipeline, and we are now actually beginning to seethings being done about it.

For the past 100 years the UK’s electricity supplyindustry has been operating in much the same wayas when it was when first created; electricity isgenerated and supplied to meet the demand on aminute-by-minute basis, but managed to meetpeaks in demand rather than tracking actual usage.However, rising energy costs, the need for energy

Network operator, Cable&Wireless Worldwide describes the challenges involved in thedevelopment of the UK’s smart grid and how Information Communication Technology (ICT)will help.

Smarter thanyour average Grid


users to better manage and reduce their carbonfootprint and for renewable energy to take up theslack as fossil fuels are replaced means the grid isnot fit for the future in its current state.

Grid and renewable energyRenewable energies are intermittent in their verynature. Wind farms are dependent on wind, solarpanels on sunlight and hydroelectricity onwaterflow, so the amount of energy they producewill vary on a daily and even hourly basis. As such,the grid will have to be updated to facilitate thestorage of excess electricity generated during off-peak times to meet peak demand. With thesechanges in mind the grid will have to be integratedwith communication systems to combine, co-ordinate and control the myriad of systems that willbe attached to it.

Furthermore, there are a number of consumerissues to take into account. Over the last decade

energy consumption, and in particular electricity,has started to occupy a more prominent place inthe collective public consciousness. Environmentaland economic reasons have joined together tomake a potent argument for the adoption of smarttechnology.

Households all over the UK now see the reductionof their carbon footprint as not only desirable, buta necessary part of everyday life. The fact that itcan go hand-in-hand with economic savings – a keydriver in these times of austerity – simply adds tothe attraction of any technology that can achieveboth.

The UK’s global commitment to reduce its carbonfootprint has also created a whole range ofGovernment and Regulatory agendas. From TheClimate Change Act (2008), through the NationalStrategy for Climate and Energy, to the CarbonReduction Commitment to the European 20:20:20

The author isAmy Cooke,StrategicBusinessDevelopmentDirector for smart gridinitiatives atCable & WirelessWorldwide.


targets, without smart technology the existing gridwill not be able to play its role in buildingsustainable energy use.

In short, the ability to manage fluctuating energygeneration, and to give greater power toconsumers to manage their energy use, rests on thecollation and interpretation of information aboutelectricity generation and use in the grid.

The role of ITThe role of IT – already of critical importance inmost industries – is now essential for thedevelopment of the grid and can be distilled intothree main areas; smart grid, smart generation andsmart metering. They all have their own set ofoutput requirements, but critically they will have towork in complete harmony as sub-components ofthe overall grid.

The grid itself has to be able to store energysurpluses and deploy them as and when they areneeded, as well as incorporating the many andvaried new types of renewable energy that nowfeed into it. The generation of electricity ischanging; wind turbines adorn the shores andoccupy open tracts of land, solar panels arecommonplace on the rooves of many suburbanhomes, and hydroelectricity is becomingincreasingly popular – in some cases, ‘sustainable’eco-friendly houses are even able to sell backelectricity to the grid that they have createdthemselves.

Smart metering is the link in the chain connectingthe smart grid and its smart generation to the enduser; allowing real-time data delivery andmonitoring, to effectively empower and enable theend user to take more control of his / her energyoutputs and have more freedom in a landscapepreviously ruled by energy giants.

Keep it realTo make the smart grid real, the UK faces a numberof challenges, not least of which will be ensuring it,and the range of systems attached to it, are secure.Security must be foremost from the first steps ofdevelopment. The smart grid is as critical to thesmooth operation of the nation and the economyas the road and rail networks, or the internet, andmust be considered as such.

The operating models between utilities and ICT

companies will have to be based on broad anddeep trusted partnerships involving ICT companieswho understand the responsibility involved intransmitting and managing critical data.

Utilities will be focused on harnessing theintelligence the smart grid will give them to analysewhat’s happening across transmission anddistribution networks. That intelligence will allowthem to continue to guarantee reliable and highquality energy supply and distribution despite thenumerous changes that will be wrought on theirbusiness by increasing penetration of renewablegeneration, electric vehicles, and combined heat &power systems (CHPs). But gathering all of thatintelligence without the right network behind it islike giving someone an email account withoutinternet access.

Delivering a unified system demands that utilitiesand communication partners develop a patchworkof initially independent communications networksfocused on the best economics possible. Cleanpower at a consistent entry cost must remain atouchstone of the infrastructure programmes thatwill create the smart grid. To maximise businesscases, utilities will need communication partnerswith proven credentials.

The smart grid will require significant investment,one that’s worth making to leave a sustainable andtechnologically rich critical asset as our legacy forfuture generations. Now is the time forcommunication providers and technology companiesto invest and experiment in durable smart gridtechnologies that are fast, secure and reliable.

The move towards smarts is an enormous projectrequiring the support of governments, regulators,utility companies and technology firms, but it’s achallenge that we are embracing. It will see thedevelopment of many unique partnerships andcollaborations, similar to those, which we havealready pioneered with the likes of Silver SpringNetworks, Cisco, and IBM. It will lead to thedevelopment of an electricity system that will servethe UK for the next century, and will create newtechnologies that have the potential to transformother methods of service delivery – changing theprovider / customer relationship for water and gasand creating interactive households with smartappliances. And let’s not forget the fundamentaldifference it will make to the environment.

Cable&Wireless

Worldwide has more

than 1,100

operational network

sites in the UK,

many of them co-

located at

substations and on

the transmission

companies’ real

estate and in excess

of 20,000 route

kilometres of glass

fibre, most of it

wrapped around the

earth wire of much

of the UK’s energy

transmission

networks.

SMART GRIDS


VIDEO REVIEW


DIARY

Mobile Health SummitGaylord National Resort and Convention CentreWashington DC, USA5-7 December, 2011http://mhealthsummit.org/exhibit_list.php

Grid Interop Phoenix, Arizona, USA5-8 December, 2011www.grid-interop.com/2011/

M2M World Europe 2011Victoria Park Plaza, London, UK12-14 December, 2011Terrapinnwww.terrapinn.com/m2m

Connected VehiclesWorld Europe 2011Victoria Park Plaza, London, UK12-14 December, 2011Terrapinnwww.terrapinn.com/connectedvehicle

Enterprise M2M Berlin, Germany23-25 January, 2012www.enterprise-m2m.com

Mobile Financial Services Hallam Conference Centre, London, UK31 January - 1 February, 2012Informawww.mobile-financialservices.com

Utilities, Smart Metering & GridsAfrica Summit 2012Cape Town, South Africa30-31 January, 2012www.africautilitiessummit2012.com

Mobile World CongressBarcelona, Spain27 February - 1 March, 2012GSMAwww.mobileworldcongress.com

Event DiaryDon’t forget to add the following events to your organiser. As M2M Now is Official MediaPartner for most of these events, we look forward to seeing you there.

Washington DC, USA

Berlin, Germany

Barcelona, Spain

According to Maingate’s CEO and president, BaardEilertsen, the MVNO now has more than 3,500customers ranging from taxi firms to large internationalutilities. “Over the past few years, we have grown tofocus on utility, manufacturing and the securityindustries. We have a full range of services towardssupporting an M2M solution,” he says.

Amid such changes, how, we ask, has Convergyshelped Maingate to evolve its service offerings?

“I often say that ‘Maingate is in the billing industry’,”replies Eilertsen. “That proves how important it to usto have a partner who understands our business tosuch an extent that they evolve with us to make ourprocesses work flawlessly. This role is something thatConvergys has had with Maingate since we started thecompany in 1998, and we feel comfortable indeveloping our services knowing that we have a stableand sustainable RBM (Convergys Rating and BillingManager) platform to support our growth. Without, itwould have been very difficult for Maingate to growso fast as an M2M service provider over the years.”

Morag Lucey, global vice president of Marketing &Product Management at Convergys, says that the

vendor can call on 25 years ofexperience providing its SmartRevenue Solutions to thetelecoms, cable, satellite,broadband, and utilitiesmarkets. “Convergys Ratingand Billing Manager is ahighly scalable and reliableconvergent charging,rating and balancemanagement system thatcan support existing andemerging services acrossmultiple vertical markets.”

The video goes on to askEilertsen about Maingate’sdrive to change to a value-based charging model, andwe ask him how he expectsdifferent charging models toevolve in the future.

Register for Free Access to M2MNow videos at: www.m2mnow.biz

The M2M Now video crew recently flew to Stockholm to talk to Maingate, to learn from theexperience of this mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) that specialises in machine-to-machine (M2M) communications, and to quiz their longest-serving partners,Convergys, on their role in enabling new business models to be introduced.

Glimpse M2M’s future on video

Baard Eilertsen,Maingate'spresident andCEO talks toM2M Now

We have a fullrange ofservicestowardssupporting anM2M solution,”


SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS

This builds on pioneering work already undertaken inproviding small, lightweight BGAN (broadband globalarea network) satellite services to enterprises worldwide.

Through the use of small, portable or semi-fixedsatellite terminals built by Hughes, BGAN provides aflexible ‘mobile office’ which can integrate withexisting corporate networks to deliver a unique end-to-end satellite broadband solution. Adapted for amedical environment, initial programmes in remotemountainous or island locations have already beensuccessful using satellite where terrestrialcommunications are either inadequate or non-existent.

Here, patients with heart conditions or pneumonia, forexample, have had their blood pressure automaticallymonitored by feeding back information on a regularbasis, with remote interventions by their consultantswhere required. Early indications are that this isproviding the medical information required to manage apatient’s condition effectively and at much lower cost.

E-careAs elsewhere in Europe, the need for home care inItaly is expanding fast, with almost one quarter of the60 million population now over 65 years old. And thisis happening at a time when the healthcare industry isunder unprecedented pressure, both financially and interms of the availability of specialist nursing andmedical care.

As a result, with fewer resources available to them,healthcare providers are having to do more with less,with an ever-stronger focus on delivery quality andclinical outcomes.

It is in this environment that a number of EuropeanSpace Agency-funded programmes have beenlaunched, involving medical services provider, Telbios,satellite management services operator, Telespazio

and partner satellite networks specialist, HughesEurope. These are designed to incorporate satellitecommunications technologies in delivering the bestpossible healthcare for the whole population in ageographically diverse country experiencing tougheconomic times.

There are a number of other drivers impacting on howthose involved in healthcare provision are tacklingthese immense challenges. Though keen to remainindependent and live in their homes for as long aspossible, increasing numbers of an ageing populationare suffering from chronic conditions. Importantlyhowever, in playing their part in managing this theyare better educated and more comfortable withtechnology.

One of the most successful initiatives to-date has beenIGEA-SAT (Integrated General E-care Access for home-care via SATellite). This initiative aimed to supplementthe existing terrestrial broadband infrastructure andput in place a tele-monitoring system that met therelevant clinical protocols for each disease and targetedimprovement in the quality of life for each patient.

Success would be defined in a number of ways. Forexample, it should meet the differing needs of thepatient management community, including the publichealth authorities and physicians. In addition, it shouldsupport patients and their families regarding healthmanagement and also keep the general public betterinformed regarding disease prevention.

Measurable health benefitsIt was recognised that the use of satellite was the onlyeffective way to bridge the digital divide ine-healthcare, as extending the existing terrestrialbroadband infrastructure was unrealistic. Critically,improvement in the clinical outcomes of IGEA-SATprogrammes would be measurable – in the reductionin the number of visits to a doctor or hospital, eitheron a planned or emergency basis, the daily monitoringof vital signs or ongoing assessment of the broaderstatus of a patient’s health.

In order to achieve this, the IGEA-SAT response was toprovide the patient with four key services:• An agenda, or activity list, of daily actions to be

performed and drugs to be taken• Tele-monitoring of physical parameters, through the

use of portable medical devices• Video-assistance for periodic video sessions

between patients and the Telemedicine Service Centre, physicians or physiotherapists

• ‘Edutainment’ – providing treatment-related information via the home TV set

This requires a highly reliable system together with a

As remote monitoring and interactive services involving consultants and theirpatients increase, today’s fast-emerging world of telemedicine is seeing some excitingdevelopments. In particular, as Massimo Marcotulli of Hughes Europe writes, trialsunderway in Italy show how satellite communications technology is proving key toenabling remote management of chronic or long-term ailments.

Bringing the hospital to you

The author is MassimoMarcotulli, Business

Development DirectorSouthern Europe,

Hughes Europe


fully integrated quality of service, including physicians’availability. The implemented network had to includehigh-availability satellite and the solution chosenincluded VSAT terminals, allowing full-duplexcommunication.

This was recognised as a proven technology offering acost-effective way to achieve the deployment ofsolutions specifically designed to support caremanagement, by ensuring full interoperability with theexisting network environment.

In order to achieve this, the solution had to include acentral satellite multimedia service centre, with 24/7technical support, a home terminal and an interactiveTV set with an intuitive, simple-to-use remote control.

The trials took place across a number of regions,including Lombardy and the island of Elba. From atechnical perspective, the results were successful inproviding the network resilience and high qualitydemanded, in a way that was well-received by patientsand healthcare professionals alike. As a result, work isnow underway to establish a commercial model thatworks for both the public sector health providers whoare keen to base payment on outcomes, andcommunications service providers used to charging onbandwidth usage.

As part of a parallel Telemedicine Pilot ProjectExecutive initiative, TELESAL, satellite-basedbroadband technology has again been used,specifically to monitor and prevent cardiovasculardiseases, including Type II diabetes – the leading causeof mortality in Western societies and the largest areaof spending in the health budgets of developedeconomies.

This is designed to roll out across Italy in providing:

Mobile emergency services – in remote areas notcovered by terrestrial, maritime and aeronauticalmobile telemedicine and screening prevention Home care services – including tele- and video-

assistance and home care medical information Communication/information-sharing – includingtele-consulting and remote training.

Remote managementThe emerging importance of telemedicine can be seenin a number of areas, involving both the public andprivate sectors. The outcome has been a number ofsatellite-based working solutions, which have provedeffective in allowing the local doctor or hospital toremotely diagnose, monitor and manage individualpatient conditions.

In the military arena, for example, trials are underwayin providing remote medical monitoring for troops inAfghanistan, controlled from a central hospital base.

Similarly, in specialist commercial operations such as oiland gas exploration, remote diagnosis andmanagement of individual patient conditions can inmany cases act as an effective substitute for face-to-face treatment. And, as with public sector-fundedprogrammes, this removes the requirement for costlyand time-consuming transportation of either the patientor the specialist to deal with the medical problem.

It is not only those obviously remote land-based ormaritime geographies where satellite is proving to bethe essential link in enabling remote medicalmanagement. Other trials involving individual patientmonitoring in parts of Italy where terrestrialcommunications are either insufficiently robust, orindeed non-existent, are also helping to develop arevolutionary new model in which patientmanagement is transformed – providing superior andmore flexible care and at a greatly reduced cost.

Thanks to innovative satellite technologies, bringing thehospital to the patient is now proving to be a practicalreality, to the benefit of the individual, the healthcareprovider and the national economy. As a result, satellitecommunications now form an essential part of anemerging model which is set to transform the provisionof healthcare across Italy and the rest of Europe.

“Military trials are

underway providing

remote medical

monitoring for troops

in Afghanistan,

controlled from a

central hospital base.”


M2M CONSUMERS RESEARCH

ChallengeAs a market research consultancy with Fortune 500clients in all of the industry sectors where M2M willplay out, Market Strategies Internationalconducted a study to ‘take the pulse’ of the consumermarketplace. We wanted to know if emerging M2Mproducts and solutions are even on the radar of theaverage US consumer household and, if they are,which M2M solutions appeal to them most.

We assessed the market appeal of M2M applicationsin five broad areas:

• Health monitoring• Home energy management• Property security/tracking• People/pet security and tracking• Mobile banking applications

After reviewing descriptions of M2M applications inseveral sectors, consumers were asked a summaryquestion about their overall interest in solutions in thatarea. From that data, we determined healthmonitoring and home energy management as the twoareas with the greatest potential to gain consumertraction.

If you are a company looking to develop M2Mproducts or to partner with other companies to deliversolutions, it is likely you will gain first moveradvantages by focusing consumer productdevelopment in the areas of health monitoring andhome energy management. Almost by definition,M2M creates ‘stickiness’ or barriers to switching asconsumers go up the learning curve and bundlevarious M2M applications or integrate M2M acrossmultiple mobile devices, household appliances or otherelectronics.

Opportunity in M2M healthCompanies that want to gain first mover advantagewill need to address the potential barriers that weuncovered as well. In particular, there appear to behigher barriers to capitalising on the health monitoringsector compared to the home energy managementspace.

The first issue in driving consumer adoption of M2Mhealth monitoring is a general lack of consumerawareness of terms associated with it. Only one-thirdof adults were familiar with terminology like“electronic medical record.” Other descriptors like“telemedicine” or “telehealth” had significantly lowerawareness levels at around 10% of those surveyed.

Moreover, decision makers may not be the end-users.Six in ten agreed health monitoring concepts would bebeneficial. And, 60% of those surveyed said they orsomeone in their immediate family has a serioushealth condition (high blood pressure, diabetes, etc.).However, interest in M2M solutions that wouldactively monitor those conditions and send daily datato a physician was typically around 40%.

Even more telling was that among those aged 55 andolder who are more prone to health problems, interestin M2M-enabled solutions was significantly lower thanyounger respondents who fall into the early adoptercohort — suggesting it will be their children in the“sandwich generation” that will drive this market asthey look for ways to take care of their ageing parentsfrom a distance.

Providers launching M2M products in the health spacewill need to be cognizant of this dynamic and develop

In the high stakes game of new product development there are high expectationsaround the emerging consumer markets for machine-to-machine (M2M) solutions. Ina February 2011 keynote speech given by Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs, he forecast70% of all consumer electronics devices will be connected to the internet by 2014.Analyst firm ABI projected more than 87% of the data traffic on mobile networks willcome from connected devices. Across the wide range of companies who are placingbets on developing M2M consumer solutions, there is an optimistic attitude bestcharacterised as ‘if we build the technology, they will come’.

Ready for prime time? Understanding the M2Mconsumer opportunity

Chart 1: Summary of Appeal Across M2M Solution Areas

The author of thissummary article isKeri Christensen,VP of MarketStrategiesInternational’sCommunicationsdivision. She has abachelor’s degree incultural geographyfrom the Universityof ColoradoBoulder and amaster’s inmarketing from theUniversity ofColorado Denver


messaging and channel placement that reachesmultiple target audiences. Messaging to consumerswill need to downplay the Big Brother aspect andpromote the increased health, independence andpeace of mind associated with these solutions.

M2M health is also a business in search of a businessmodel. Consumers were concerned about how theywere going to pay for any new health monitoringdevices or technology, or if it would be covered bytheir health insurance. Furthermore, the ecosystemaround these solutions is more complicated as theymay require clinical trials to meet FDA review andapproval, physician education, etc. The big money willbe made once insurance companies and employers areconvinced that M2M health monitoring willsignificantly reduce cost of care.

Opportunity in M2M home energymanagement and securityA more immediate opportunity to launch solutions mayexist in the home energy and security space. Overall,the energy and utilities industry has generated higherconsumer awareness of terminology around smart gridand smart meter technologies than we saw for healthcare.However, awareness of these terms appears to havehit a plateau at around 35% of the US population. Anenergy tracking study conducted by Market Strategiesshows this level of awareness unchanged since late2009. Given the regional nature of these energy/utilitycompanies, the space seems ripe for a larger nationalplayer to move in and drive awareness and adoption.

Almost all of the concepts tested in the home energymanagement and home security areas generatedpositive interest among 50% or more of households.Additionally, consumers say the benefits stronglyoutweigh most of the barriers.

M2M providers have the flexibility to position productsas an opportunity to save money, gain peace of mindor preserve the environment. Again, consumersbecome leery when the messaging or technologycrosses over into territory that sounds too invasive,such as the ability of utilities to automatically reduceor limit energy consumption during peak periods forhouseholds that have a smart meter installed. Lessthan two-fifths of consumers were worried about thecomplexity of the technology or the security of thedata being transmitted about their home’senvironment.

Cost is always an issue, especially in this tougheconomy, but consumers see M2M solutions in thisarea as a proactive way to protect their investment intheir biggest assets — home, vehicles, and so on.

However, compared to the health space, theecosystem is less complex and individual homeownershave direct control over whether to add and pay forthese capabilities. First-to-market movers in homeenergy and property security can reduce churn andincrease their total share of a household’s spend asM2M will likely create barriers to switching byintegrating a households’ internet service,entertainment packages and connected home services.

Bottom lineM2M is a wide open playing field that will requiresavvy partnering to assemble OEM devices, software,data transport and a billing platform. Market winnerswill address security concerns, promote simplicity andcommunicate tangible and intangible benefits withoutcrossing over into Big Brother territory. At this point,two-fifths of US households say the potential benefitsof these types of solutions outweigh the potentialissues, and about one-third say they are ready to startseeking out more information. Our goal at MarketStrategies is to continue to serve our clients as theytest their go-to-market strategies in the M2M space.

How the study was conductedMarket Strategies International interviewed a nationalsample of 1,500 consumers aged 18 and olderbetween June 21 and July 1, 2011. Respondents wererecruited from an opt-in online panel and completedan online survey. The data were weighted by age,gender and census region to match the demographicsof the US population. Note: due to its opt-in nature,the online panel (like most) does not yield a randomprobability sample of the target population. For moreinformation, contact [email protected] orvisit www.marketstrategies.com

Chart 3: Home Energy Management Benefits and Barriers

Chart 4: Overall Benefits Chart of M2M

Chart 2: Health Monitoring Benefits & Barriers Chart

“We determined

health monitoring and

home energy

management as the

two areas with the

greatest potential to

gain consumer

traction.”

THE BACK PAGE

A spin around the news from the world of machine-to-machine(M2M) communications, connected devices, enterprise mobilityand smart services. For more information on these and otherstories go to www.m2mnow.biz

M2M by Numbers

www.orga-systems.comM2M Now November - December 201130

CSPs rankedby Analysys

Mason in reporton M2M

performance

Date by whichAsia will becomethe largest M2M

market, saysPyramidResearchChina Mobile

completeswireless city

platforms in 150Chinese cities

North Americaaccounts forUS$350m in

advanced watermeter shipments

in 2010

New videos atwww.M2Mnow.biz describingthe connectedworld in 2012

Vodafonechosen by Sony

as preferredpartner to

connect newPS Vita

M2M Now is soon to publish its Online Directoryof companies involved in machine-to-machinecommunication services worldwide. These include:Application Developers, Connectivity Providers,Module & Terminal OEMs, Device & ComponentManufacturers, Gateway & Router Suppliers,Platform Providers, System Integrators, Analysts& Consultants. Any organisation directly involvedin M2M and connected devices can be listed.

Platinum listings give readers full ContactInformation (including Email and URL), and aresearchable A-Z, by M2M Market Segment, orIndustry Type. This will soon be available to the'000s of visitors worldwide who useM2MNow.biz on a daily basis.

Register Online TODAY – Email: [email protected] Now – A World of New M2M Business

Make sure you’re listed in the 2012

M2M Now Directorywww.m2mnow.biz

blog-led website and quarterlymagazine for machine tomachine communications

the latest news, reviews andinsights in the world of M2M

M2Mnow.bizProfit from a world of connected devices

m2m now magazine oct-dec 2011 edition

Documents

m2m nowmarket news

m2m connectivity undervalued

news videos

d o f c o n n e c t

consumer m2m applications

contract market news

m2ms growth

mexicocontract news