Since the foundation of the Internet of
Things is actual networking, innovation can come from virtually anywhere.
While many mobile startups were born, nurtured and scaled from New York and California, IoT entities are
everywhere.
Projects in Asia, Europe and North America are booming, with no real center of activity. There are some notable IoT hotspots, such as Boston and nearby towns, but creation is
happening at different scales in different places.
Part of the IoT explosion involves technology and part involves using that technology for new marketing methods.
And the growth of
IoT devices is widespread.
For example, wearables are becoming very popular in the Middle East and Africa, with device shipments up almost 65% from a year ago, according to International Data
Corp. Another 20% annual growth a year is projected over the next four years.
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Sensor technology is also being deployed and starting to be used in new ways.
In New Zealand, Heineken is
using beacons at more than 100 locations to provide big ticket prizes to consumers. Such prices include flights around the country and helicopter rides to a special event. The program, including the
mobile app triggered by beacons, was developed by Saatchi and Saatchi.
In China, the first mass produced smart car is being introduced by Alibaba. The so-called ‘Internet car’ has
its own unique operating system rather than relying on one from Apple or Google.
In London, slow-moving delivery robots will haul food on-demand to consumers. More than 25 robots have driven
about 5,000 miles in earlier tests in London and Estonia. Other robotic and drone package delivery services are being developed in numerous countries, along with Amazon and Google.
An
automated system in Australia is launching for beer brewing. The system uses Wi-Fi, precise temperature control and fermentation technology at the touch of a button. The remote-controlled brewing is
expected in the U.S. later this year.
Virtual Reality, one of the hottest IoT growth areas, is being added to NBC’s Olympic coverage. Using Samsung’s Gear VR, viewers will have
access to 85 hours of VR content through the NBC sports app.
There are many more examples, but you get the idea.
The home of innovation for this tech-based revolution has no
obvious place.
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Marketing in connected homes? Come hear Trevor Guthrie of Giant
Spoon, Dino Hainline of Midnight Oil, Greg Hedges of Rain and Jeff Suhy of Modop at the MediaPost IoT Marketing Forum Aug. 3 in New York. Check it out the agenda here.