MIIT Briefing - European Commission

SPEECH / VIDEOMESSAGE / 10 / XXX

Neelie Kroes Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for the Digital Agenda

“As the IoT matures into the connected society”

High-level Internet of Things conference Budapest, 16th May 2011

Author: Peter Friess DG INFSO, Unit: D4 Telephone: 21414

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Dear Ladies and Gentlemen, I am very pleased to be able to speak to you today, I am only sorry it can't be there in person because I know your questions and ideas would be highly stimulating. At least digital technology is giving us part of a solution! For me it is important that we now have a clear perspective of what the Internet of Things means, not just an idea of what it is, and we are moving ahead in exploring what its impacts may be on society, on the economy, on individuals and their relationships. The Internet of Things is billions of connected objects. It means an intelligent new way of managing our world, enriching our daily lives and allowing us to generate, process, manage and use information in completely new ways. Its impacts will be manifest in the dawning of a new economic services sector; adding a whole new dimension to the Internet as we know it today. I think it is time to conclude that the Internet of Things is slowly coming of age; (although still a very young adolescent). Whether it is Smart Cities, eHealth and Assisted Living, Intelligent Manufacturing, Smart Logistics and Transport, or Smart Metering, 21st century machines are now sensing, anticipating, and responding to our needs; and we can control them remotely. Behind the abstract concept of the Internet of things lay very concrete applications that are available to us already. Author: Peter Friess DG INFSO, Unit: D4 Telephone: 21414

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I am especially interested in applications where IoT technologies are used to the benefit of society and the citizen – for example in managing scarce resources like energy and water. Other exciting examples are the health monitoring systems that are helping elderly people to live longer at home rather than in institutions. Interconnected cars will help reduce traffic congestion, they will help drivers avoid accidents and receive urgent help when accidents do happen. But also mobile contactless payment, mobile tickets and other location-based services that are supporting the creation of a digital single market of the future. It is my strong belief that the real innovation will come from combining Cloud Computing and the Internet of Things. The Internet of Things enables intelligence to be captured at the edge of the network. Cloud Computing enables it to be serviced. Suppose you manage a fleet of cars for an organisation. The Internet of Things devices will allow you to monitor their environmental performance while Cloud Computing will help you to process the data and pick out the ones that need maintenance. To give an EU value-add to this potential I am working to deliver a European strategy for Cloud Computing in 2012. Important issues at stake


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But as I say this I realise full well that none of this is simple and that we should be fully aware that people have concerns about these developments. We cannot have a policy or create the impression that the Internet of Things would create a an Orwellian world. Our goal, and our commitment, should be to create a vision that focuses on providing real value for people. Thus we cannot innovate in a bubble if citizens are not coming along for the journey. So we need an ethical and legal framework that enjoys broad support. Technology and service developers should actively embrace this as a corner stone of the Internet of Things. This is your future market and your future customers need to be able to trust it. Their concerns must be taken into full account in the development of the Internet of Things. Thus our endeavours must internalise concepts like: 1) interoperability 2) privacy-by-design 3) ensuring that civil liberties are enhanced, not reduced, by the Internet of Things. We cannot avoid addressing these issues at European level. If the EU does not act we risk fragmenting the market, leading to a considerable increase in compliance costs, legal uncertainty, Author: Peter Friess DG INFSO, Unit: D4 Telephone: 21414

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regulatory arbitrage and underinvestment. In turn these will prevent the Internet of Things from taking off in Europe. If we want the Internet of Things to bloom in Europe we need a common approach - actively supported by EU Member States that understand the high potential of the Internet of Things. All Member States should explicitly anchor the Internet of Things in their national ICT strategies. The Internet of Things can be a precursor to much wider ranging policy discussions on the Future Internet, Ubiquitous Networking and Computing, and the effective governance of the ‘Cloud’ in Europe. In the context of the Expert Group for the IoT which the Commission launched last year, we aim to design an integrated, internationally

agreed

and

standards-supported

governance

structure. We want this to exploit the existing and future Internet, existing and future fixed and mobile telecommunications systems, existing and future object-connected technologies. Not to mention couple it with any non-Internet private networks. Overall the goal is to facilitate the development of novel applications and services that serve the international economic community and the increase our welfare and well-being. In doing this we will also be building on success of the coregulation approach to RFID Privacy Impact Assessments, and Author: Peter Friess DG INFSO, Unit: D4 Telephone: 21414

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research efforts towards privacy-by-design which are helping individuals to dip in and out of networked environments as they prefer. So, in closing, let me offer a few pragmatic steps forward: 1. We all have to work together to firm up a level regulatory playing field and predictable policy environment. 2. We’ll continue dedicating research to the Internet of Things and many related areas of the Future Internet, notably through the Future Internet Public Private Partnership. 3. The Internet of Things doesn’t stop at Europe's borders, so we need to actively work with other governments. But to be a credible global partner, we need to step up our own investments in the Internet of Things. 4. Most important: we must never, ever forget that the Internet of Things is there to improve people’s freedom, choice and control over their lives. 5. The expert group is already looking at issues like governance, trust, security and privacy, and will intensify its efforts; connecting also to discussions on Cloud computing and the Future Internet.


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Given the scale of the challenge, I urge you to jump into action on all these fronts. Your well thought-out actions will guide us to a stronger Internet of Things.


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