Image: Kanchana Koyjai
In an announcement earlier this year, major Internet industry leaders invested in the future success of IoT by creating the Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF). The OCF was created with a goal to unify IoT development in order to allow companies and developers to work together to create specifications, protocols and open source projects enabling devices and solutions that can work together as securely and seamlessly as possible.
The founding members of the OCF include industry leaders Microsoft, Cisco, Electrolux, General Electric, Intel, Qualcomm, and Samsung. According to Microsoft’s announcement, “Regardless of the manufacturer, operating system, chipset or transport – devices that adhere to the OCF specifications will simply work together.”
The biggest companies in the industry are forming this partnership to demonstrate their dedication to ensuring interoperability as a critical success element for the IoT. In addition, the OCF is committed to helping all developers and companies create “solutions that map to a single, open IoT interoperability specification.”
As more organizations begin to understand the impact IoT can have, leveraging the OpenStand Principles will help alliance and consortia develop standards that may be more easily converted into true standards by Standards Development Organizations (SDO’s). The OpenStand principles capture the effective and efficient processes that can make technologies the most ripe for innovation and borderless commerce.
For more information about the OCF, visit www.openconnectivity.org. We also hope you’ll consider becoming an advocate for the OpenStand Principles in technology and standards development.