IBM and AT&T Join Forces To Further "Internet of Things" Across Cities
As mobile carriers across the North American landscape make moves to position themselves as more than just utilities, AT&T is unveiling a new partnership with a huge enterprise mainstay in order to prove precisely that. AT&T and IBM announced this week that they'll be joining forces in order to "combine their analytic platforms, cloud, and security technologies with privacy in mind to gain more insights on data collected from machines in a variety of industries."
On the whole, the two will be working to extend the premise of the "Internet of Things," with IBM handling back-end infrastructure and AT&T handling wireless communications. According to the two, the new alliance will initially focus on creating new solutions targeted for city governments and midsize utilities. These cities have major problems to solve, and it's going to take a couple of large companies to pull it together. IBM and AT&T see it as such: "these organizations intend to integrate and analyze vast quantities of data from assets such as mass transit vehicles, utility meters, and video cameras; as a result, cities may be able to better evaluate patterns and trends to improve urban planning and utilities can better manage their equipment to reduce costs."
Of course, hearing things like goals for connecting the planet all seems a bit grandiose, but perhaps it's not all that far-fetched after all. Connected wearables, phones, and cars are already here From this point forward, it's mostly about collecting and making sense of all of the information.
We're eager to see what kinds of tangible results come from this; at this point, it's mostly a theoretical partnership, but hopefully, it'll soon turn to specific goals to help make the cities we live in more efficient.
On the whole, the two will be working to extend the premise of the "Internet of Things," with IBM handling back-end infrastructure and AT&T handling wireless communications. According to the two, the new alliance will initially focus on creating new solutions targeted for city governments and midsize utilities. These cities have major problems to solve, and it's going to take a couple of large companies to pull it together. IBM and AT&T see it as such: "these organizations intend to integrate and analyze vast quantities of data from assets such as mass transit vehicles, utility meters, and video cameras; as a result, cities may be able to better evaluate patterns and trends to improve urban planning and utilities can better manage their equipment to reduce costs."
Of course, hearing things like goals for connecting the planet all seems a bit grandiose, but perhaps it's not all that far-fetched after all. Connected wearables, phones, and cars are already here From this point forward, it's mostly about collecting and making sense of all of the information.
We're eager to see what kinds of tangible results come from this; at this point, it's mostly a theoretical partnership, but hopefully, it'll soon turn to specific goals to help make the cities we live in more efficient.
