Microsoft, Intel, Cisco, Qualcomm, Samsung, GE Digital and others have formed the Open Connectivity Foundation. A top Microsoft executive says the group will help set industry standards for the Internet of Things.
The OCF will create a set of open specifications and protocols to enable devices from a variety of manufactures to securely and seamlessly interact with one another,” wrote Terry Myerson, executive vice president of Microsoft’s Windoiws and Devices Group. “Regardless of the manufacturer, operating system, chipset or transport – devices that adhere to the OCF specifications will simply work together.”
Various forecasts predict billions of devices being connected to the IoT, and the business opportunity is estimated by Cisco to run into the trillions of dollars.
The new group was announced Friday.
“At Microsoft, we believe in strong partnerships to create opportunity across the ecosystem,” he added. “Today, we’re pleased to join other industry leaders to create the Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF), which is committed to furthering industry standards for the Internet of Things. Along with founding members Cisco, Electrolux, General Electric, Intel, Qualcomm, Samsung and others, we are proud to be part of the world’s largest open IoT standard group. Together, our goal is to accelerate industry innovation for all of our customers, ultimately benefiting billions of people around the world.”
The Open Connectivity Foundation announcement
“Today, major industry leaders who are invested in the future of the Internet of Things, announced they will unify as the Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF), an entity whose goal will be to help unify IoT standards so that companies and developers can create IoT solutions and devices that work seamlessly together. Via cross-industry collaboration, the OCF will work towards unlocking the massive opportunity of the future global IoT segment, accelerate industry innovation and help all developers and companies create solutions that map to a single, open IoT interoperability specification. Ultimately, with OCF specifications, protocols and open source projects, a wide-range of consumer, enterprise and embedded devices and sensors from a variety of manufacturers, can securely and seamlessly interact with one another.
“The OCF unifies the entirety of the former Open Interconnect Consortium with leading companies at all levels – silicon, software, platform, and finished-goods – dedicated to providing this key interoperability element of an IoT solution.
“The OCF’s vision for IoT is that billions of connected devices (appliances, phones, computers, industrial equipment) will communicate with one another regardless of manufacturer, operating system, chipset or transport. With the OCF fulfilling this promise, anyone – from a large technology company to a maker in their garage – can adopt the open standards of OCF to innovate and compete, helping ensure secure interoperability for consumers, business, and industry.”
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“We have helped lead the formation of the OCF because we believe deeply in its vision and the potential an open standard can deliver. Despite the opportunity and promise of IoT to connect devices in the home or in businesses, competition between various open standards and closed company protocols have slowed adoption and innovation. Much like W3C manages the standards for the World Wide Web, the IEEE sets electrical engineering standards and the UPU sets the global postal code – standardization can help consolidate industry attention and create opportunity, via an agreed upon set of protocols that move industries and the world forward,” Myerson wrote.
“Windows 10 devices will natively interoperate with the new OCF standard, making it easy for Windows to discover, communicate, and orchestrate multiple IoT devices in the home, in business, and beyond. The OCF standards will also be fully compatible with the 200 million Windows 10 devices that are “designed for AllSeen” today.”
What other execs say about the new organization
- ARRIS
“We are excited to be a part of this revolutionary group of leaders and look forward to bringing a standardized and powerful solution to both Service Providers and Retail as more devices and IoT services enter the market.” – Charles Cheevers, CTO, Customer Premises Equipment.
- CableLabs
“CableLabs is all about interoperability and scale economics. We are extremely supportive of the unification of these efforts and believe that it will allow the broader industry to better leverage their equipment, services and infrastructure. This greatly expands the Internet of Things footprint for cable operators, their suppliers, and most importantly their subscribers.” – Ralph Brown, Chief Technology Officer
- Cisco
“OIC’s leadership and expansion to OCF is a step forward as these two leading standards bodies are unified to achieve a common set of protocols and certifications for IoT. OCF will help enable developers and industries around consumer, SP, enterprise, industrial to leverage promise of IoT in a scalable and secure manner.” – John Oberon, Vice President, IoT Software
- Electrolux
“The Open Connectivity Foundation will create significant value for consumers by paving the way for an interoperable future. We’re well on our way to a truly smart home, and this will only happen when appliances can freely communicate with a wide range of products. This important move takes us one step closer to realizing that vision, by widening our existing collaboration initiatives to an even larger number of global brands.” — Jan Brockmann, Chief Operations Officer
- GE Digital
“Breaking down the barriers of technology silos and supporting better integration of these solutions and devices will be key to advancing the Industrial Internet of Things. GE is excited to join together with other organizations to create the standards that will help enable interoperability in the future.” – Greg Petroff, Chief Experience Officer
- Intel
“We believe in a future where all of the devices in our lives are connected to enable ways of living and working that we can’t even imagine today. The only way to unlock the unlimited possibilities for innovation in the Internet of Things is to unify our work with industry peers. This collaboration is an exciting step in that direction.” – Doug Fisher, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Software and Services Group
- Qualcomm
“Qualcomm has pursued the goal of open interoperability from the beginning. We helped develop the AllJoyn framework to drive this goal, and now we look forward to collaborating with leading IoT-focused companies to form the OCF for precisely the same reason. We look forward to achieving the IoT vision we all share.” – Michael Wallace, President of Qualcomm Connected Experiences, Inc. (a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated)
- Samsung
“OIC has been working to develop a standard specification for IoT devices, and at the same time developing IoTivity as an open source reference implementation. We welcome these leaders in their fields to OCF, which we believe will become the most diverse global organization developing IoT standards and code.” – SeungHwan Cho, Executive Vice President and Deputy Head of Software R&D Center
