IoT: One platform for everyone

Oct 06, 2016

• Deutsche Telekom builds multi-IoT platform in the House of Cloud
• IoT platforms Microsoft Azure, Cisco Fog and Huawei united under one roof
• Multi-IoT platform gives maximum flexibility to IoT applications

Different standards and platforms: an obstacle to the expected business development of the Internet of Things. Deutsche Telekom has now developed a solution to this problem at its cloud data center in Biere, launching a multi-IoT platform at its House of Clouds. It will unite different IoT platforms from well-known providers and enable the comprehensive, device-independent use of IoT solutions. The House of IoT will begin with the Azure IoT Suite from Microsoft, followed by Cisco Fog and the IoT platform from Huawei.

"According to a study by PAC, we've only captured five percent of the potential of the IoT. This is due, among other factors, to the highly fragmented market, which requires users to manage many different specialist suppliers," said Anette Bronder, Director of T-Systems ' Digital Division, at the launch of the multi-IoT cloud. "We now offer a scalable, pan-industry platform, together with plug-and-play starter packages to help companies begin using the IoT."

The multi-IoT platform plays the role of interpreter and distributor, collecting data from a variety of hardware, such as sensors and machinery, and routing it through gateways to the preferred platform for processing. Deutsche Telekom operates the platforms as a data custodian. All data is subject to strict German privacy and data protection laws. Only authorized users of the multi-IoT platform have access to the data, along with operator T-Systems .

Deutsche Telekom also offers full-service IoT packages to give companies a jump start in the Internet of Things. The standard package for predictive maintenance, for example, includes sensors for recording machine conditions, connectivity for transmitting the data to the cloud, use of the IoT platform and presentation of the data in a web-based dashboard. In the coming months, this standard package will be enhanced with a data analytics service. Several elevator manufacturers are already using this predictive maintenance solution to maintain their systems.

Machina Research:Deutsche Telekom among the leaders in the IoT

According to the latest Internet of Things (IoT) benchmark from Machina Research, Deutsche Telekom is one of the top players among IoT providers. The market intelligence company assessed the IoT offerings from 17 international telecommunications providers and gave top marks to Deutsche Telekom for its end-to-end approach: a multi-IoT service platform; strategic partnerships and IoT industry solutions; and network, integration and consulting services from a single source were listed by Machina Research as the outstanding features of Deutsche Telekom's IoT offerings.

"Customers benefit from highly scalable, secure, end-to-end solutions based on state-of-the-art technology," says Godfrey Chua, Principal Analyst at Machina Research and author of the study "Internet of Things (IoT), Communications Service Provider Benchmarking 2016." Deutsche Telekom is a serious contender in the global race of telecommunications providers for leadership in the IoT market, he noted.