Ofcom tackles Internet of Things

Ofcom is taking the bull by the horns by planning to create new regulations for the Internet of Things – hailed as a new era for one-to-one marketing  – to ensure the UK plays a leading role in developing the IoT market.
The communications regulator believes most data protection concerns will be covered by existing legislation although says it will work with the Information Commissioner’s Office, government, other regulators and industry as “traditional approaches to data privacy may have limitations in the context of the IoT”.
The IoT is still baffling to many as it will see see billions of smart gadgets and devices wirelessly connected to the Internet and “talking” to each other. Writing in the DM Commission’s annual report, chief executive of Digital Strategy Consulting Danny Meadows-Klue said: “For marketers this is the one-to-one future you’ve been chasing. Use it wisely, treat the data responsibly, create value and trust among your customers. One-to-one marketing is at the dawn of a new era. The responsibility of agencies, brands and their marketers will decide whether it’s an era in which the one-to-one marketing industry triumphs as a champion of the consumer, or is restricted because of abuse of trust to a small role on the sidelines.”
There are already over 40 million devices connected via the IoT in the UK alone. It is expected that globally up to 50 billion smart devices, ranging from cars and parking meters to coffee machines and combine harvesters could be connected to the Internet by 2020, each using tiny slivers of spectrum to get online.
And Ofcom says it has the potential for significant benefits to citizens and consumers, and especially business.
Applications range from wirelessly connected sensors used for ‘smart’ farming, where fertilizer and water are automatically distributed across a farm to increase efficiency, to intelligent traffic management systems and smart energy grids, which match power generated to consumers’ electricity needs.
Ofcom’s plan is to ensure the UK has the tools and infrastructure to allow the IoT to develop unhindered. To support this, Ofcom has already released spectrum for machine to machine uses – making the UK among the first countries in Europe to do so.
Acting Ofcom chief executive Steve Unger said: “The Internet of Things will bring benefits to a range of sectors and could change the way we live our lives.
“As a result of this growth, we have listened closely to industry and want to develop a framework for this technology to evolve in a way which will ultimately benefit citizens and consumers.”