more on ITU Internet Reports 2005: The Internet of Things

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Dana Blankenhorn <dana () a-clue com>
Date: December 5, 2005 3:00:50 PM EST
To: dave () farber net
Subject: Re: [IP] ITU Internet Reports 2005: The Internet of Things

http://www.corante.com/mooreslore/archives/2005/12/05/ 
what_the_world_of_always_on_needs_now.php


What The World of Always On Needs Now

Posted by Dana Blankenhorn

The International Telecommunications Union has released a full report  
on what I've been calling The World of Always On, which they call The  
Internet of Things.

The report correctly identifies the biggest problem, user acceptance:


 Concerns over privacy and data protection are widespread,  
particularly as sensors and smart tags can track a user’s movements,  
habits and preferences on a perpetual basis. Fears related to  
nanotechnology range from bio medical hazards to robotic control.

None of these are unreasonable fears. Addressing them requires  
acceptance of some very new, and important societal values:

 a.. Privacy
 b.. Personal control of personal data
These must be enforceable to have meaning. The technology and tools  
for all this have been around for years now, but the business has not  
gone anywhere because no country on the face of the Earth has yet  
accepted the fact that it must give up absolute rights to its  
citizens' data before people can trust the technology enough to use it.

This can be done in the U.S., through a simple contract. We need a  
model contract, written in laymans' language, something like the GPL  
which can be enforced when businesses or government violate it.

It can be done in other countries as well. Any nation with respect  
for private contracts, or which will write an enforceable endorsement  
of Data Contracts into its laws, can gain the benefits of Always On  
technology.

What benefits?




 1.. Medical -- monitoring that keeps people healthy by letting care- 
givers know automatically when it's time to intervene.

 2.. Environmental -- Automated management of heating costs, lights,  
and water usage.

 3.. Personal -- Remote access to your home's appliances, and  
instant knowledge of where your stuff is. Real security at declining  
cost.

That's just the beginning, of course. If you control your personal  
data, if that right is guaranteed, then everything you own can become  
intelligent, subject to your command.

It's all waiting out there for all of us. But what I didn't  
acknowledge when I first began writing about this, two years ago now,  
was the difficulty of taking that first step.

Because it's a doozy.

Government, private enterprise, give it up for the individual. You  
have all to gain.

----- Original Message ----- From: "David Farber" <dave () farber net>
To: <ip () v2 listbox com>
Sent: Friday, December 02, 2005 2:12 PM
Subject: [IP] ITU Internet Reports 2005: The Internet of Things


> Begin forwarded message:
>
> From: john wilson <johnresearch () hotmail com>
> Date: December 2, 2005 11:30:59 AM EST
> To: dave () farber net, ip () v2 listbox com
> Subject: ITU Internet Reports 2005: The Internet of Things
>
> Dave- of interest for IP list?
> ===
>
> [A landmark report from the ITU. - JW]
>
> http://www.itu.int/osg/spu/publications/internetofthings/
>
> ITU Internet Reports 2005: The Internet of Things
>
> Written by a team of analysts from the Strategy and Policy Unit  
> (SPU)  of the ITU, the report takes a look at the next step in  
> "always on" communications, in which new technologies like RFID and  
> smart  computing promise a world of networked and interconnected  
> devices  that provide relevant content and information whatever the  
> location  of the user. Everything from tires to toothbrushes will  
> be in  communications range, heralding the dawn of a new era, one  
> in which  today’s Internet (of data and people) gives way to  
> tomorrow’s  Internet of Things.
>
> (...) It seems that we are standing on the brink of a new  
> computing  and communication era, one that will radically transform  
> our  corporate, community, and personal spheres. With continuing   
> developments in miniaturization and declining costs, it is  
> becoming  not only technologically possible but also economically  
> feasible to  make everyday objects smarter, and to connect the  
> world of people  with the world of things. Building this new  
> environment however, will  pose a number of challenges.  
> Technological standardization in most  areas is still in its  
> infancy, or remains fragmented. Not  surprisingly, managing and  
> fostering rapid technological innovation  will be a challenge for  
> governments and industry alike. But perhaps  one of the most  
> important challenges is convincing users to adopt  emerging  
> technologies like RFID. Concerns over privacy and data  protection  
> are widespread, particularly as sensors and smart tags can  track a  
> user’s movements, habits and preferences on a perpetual  basis.  
> Fears related to nanotechnology range from bio-medical hazards  to  
> robotic control. But whatever the concern, one thing remains clear:  
> scientific and technological advances in these fields continue  to  
> move ahead at breakneck speed. It is only through awareness of   
> such advances, and the challenges they present, that we can reap  
> the  future benefits of a fair, user-centric and global Internet of  
> Things.
>
> + related BBC news item:
>
> http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4440334.stm
>
> Changes brought about by the internet will be dwarfed by those   
> prompted by the networking of everyday objects, says a report by a  
> UN  body.
>
> The study looks at how the use of electronic tags and sensors could  
> create an "internet of things".
>
> The report by the International Telecommunications Union was  
> released  at the UN net summit in Tunis.
>
> Thousands of delegates are discussing ways of narrowing the   
> technology gap between rich and poor.
>
> "It would seem that science fiction is slowly turning into science   
> fact in an 'Internet of Things' based on ubiquitous network   
> connectivity," said the report.
>
> "Today, in the 2000s, we are heading into a new era of ubiquity,   
> where the 'users' of the internet will be counted in billions and   
> where humans may become the minority as generators and receivers  
> of  traffic."
>
> (...)
>
>
>
>
>
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