Kevin’s M2M News Weekly – June 30, 2010

You are reading the first edition of "Kevin's M2M News Weekly." This is an online newsletter that is made up of the most interesting news and articles related to M2M (machine to machine) and embedded mobile devices that I run across each week. I aggregate the information, include the original links and add a synopsis of each article. I also search for the latest market numbers such as market size, growth and trends in and around the M2M market.

I believe that enterprise mobility and the M2M markets are converging.  Both areas exchange wireless data with the enterprise.  Both play important roles in enterprise asset management, fleet management and field services.

You can read archived editions of Kevin's M2M News Weekly at  http://mobileenterprisestrategies.blogspot.com/p/m2m.html.

Please send me any interesting M2M news links, market numbers, events, case studies, analyst reports or whitepapers that you come across and I will include in my newsletter. Enjoy!

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ABI Research forecasts that Wi-Fi-enabled health care products will hit sales of nearly $5 billion globally in 2014, up 70% from 2009. The increase is expected partly because of the need to provide wireless networks to support improved asset management, mobile workers, standard administration of medications and digitized records, said Stan Schatt, an ABI analyst.

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9135412/Wi_Fi_enabled_health_care_products_to_surge_with_electronic_medical_records?taxonomyId=1

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If you are interested in the M2M or embedded mobile devices market for consumer electronics, you may want to watch this short video on the consumer electronics segment of M2M.

http://mobileenterprisestrategies.blogspot.com/2010/06/m2m-market-overview-part-2-consumer.html

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Vodafone’s machine-to-machine business has taken 40 percent of the market since it launched the M2M division last year, it said last week.

http://it.tmcnet.com/news/2010/06/25/4869524.htm

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TMC and Crossfire Media announced that their M2M Evolution Conference will once again be collocated with TMC's ITExpo, October 4-6, at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

http://it.tmcnet.com/news/2010/06/24/4866658.htm

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In emerging markets, “device” was almost synonymous with “smartphone,” while in mature markets the “device” focus went beyond smartphones and into other devices, such as machine-to-machine readers, netbooks, e-readers and tablets.

http://connectedplanetonline.com/mobile-apps/news/amdocs-sp-role-study-062410/
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A new M2M analyst report is available on the Maximizing Wireless Profits website. M2M is a very intriguing market. It is closely related to enterprise mobility in that mobile devices (embedded mobile devices, remote sensors and monitors) are collecting and sending data back to a central server. The audiences for this report are mobile network operators (MNOs), M2M and mobile enterprise software companies.

http://mobileenterprisestrategies.blogspot.com/2010/06/m2m-growth-opportunities-for-mnos-in.html

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Gemalto is looking to insert SIM cards into mobile devices. Today the identity module–maker announced it is purchasing Cinterion Wireless, the world’s largest manufacturer of GSM machine-to-machine wireless communications modules. The combination will put under a single umbrella the two technologies necessary to make an M2M solution work: the radio module that physically connects a device to the network and the authentication and security software that allows it to transmit.

http://connectedplanetonline.com/3g4g/news/gemalto-buys-cinterion-062910/

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M2M, or machine-to-machine communication, is fast becoming a market-changing force for a wide spectrum of entrepreneurial businesses. Since launching its Emerging Solutions Group in October 2009, Sprint has worked with solutions partners to help a growing number of businesses serve customers -- and in some cases outflank their competitors -- with M2M innovation.

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http://www.marketwatch.com/story/machines-talk-together-and-transform-business-operations-with-sprints-m2m-wireless-mobility-solutions-2010-06-16?reflink=MW_news_stmp

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Machine-to-machine communications is emerging as an important growth area in wireless, but there's a battle underway over which network is best suited to accommodate the expected onslaught of connected devices.

http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=193336&f_src=lightreading_gnews

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Now that SAP has enterprise mobility all figured out, it is time to explore opportunities in the M2M marketplace. M2M is a vision of connecting physical things through a network that will let them take an active part in exchanging information about themselves and their surroundings over the Internet.

http://mobileenterprisestrategies.blogspot.com/2010/05/m2m-market-opportunities-introduction.html

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Over the next five years the market for wearable wireless sensors is set to grow to more than 400 million devices by 2014. Demand will come from the professional healthcare, home healthcare and sports and fitness markets, but these markets will develop at different speeds and will support different applications. The sports and fitness market represents more than 90 percent of the market today.

http://www.abiresearch.com/press/1460-Market+for+Wearable+Wireless+Sensors+to+Grow+to+More+than+400+Million+Devices+by+2014

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Sprint plans to open up a center to help foster the development of embedded mobile devices using a cellular connection later this year, according to a company executive. As the traditional business of providing cellphone voice and data services begins to peak, carriers are racing to stake a claim in a new area commonly known as connected devices. Sprint, which moved early in the area and pioneered a wholesale business model with Amazon’s Kindle, has since fallen behind its larger peers Verizon Wireless and AT&T.

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100616-710644.html?mod=WSJ_latestheadlines


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 Kevin Benedict, SAP Mentor, SAP Top Contributor, Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst
CEO/Principal Consultant, Netcentric Strategies LLC
http://www.netcentric-strategies.com/
www.linkedin.com/in/kevinbenedict
http://twitter.com/krbenedict

***Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility consultant and Web 2.0 marketing expert. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

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What I Learned about Mobility at Sapphire 2010, Part 2

At Sapphire 2010, not only did SAP discuss their intent to acquire Sybase, but they also announced Project Gateway. Project Gateway is an API layer (gateway) that is designed for simple mobile applications and M2M (machine to machine) integrations with SAP. The intent as I understand it is for SUP (Sybase Unwired Platform) to be the integration layer for complex mobile applications (rich/thick clients) that require advanced synchronization technologies, and Project Gateway for lightweight iPhone, BlackBerry, Android and other micro applications.

SAP was quick to add that mobility partners can develop and use their own integration methodologies as well.  They espoused the virtues of choice.  As a result, I see the following integration options:

• SAP's strategy for integrating advanced rich or thick client mobile applications will be SUP.
• SAP's strategy for integrating lightweight mobile applications will be Project Gateway.
• SAP also certifies a variety of integration strategies specific to various mobility partners.
• Customized integrations.

SAP mobility partners that have invested heavily into their own integration and mobile middleware technologies must now consider supporting multiple integration strategies - their own and SAP's.  This may increase their development and support costs but flexibility nearly always does.

Mobile enterprise application vendors often support many ERPs and business applications. Their current inventory of mobile middleware and integration tools may continue to be needed in these non-SAP environments.  It seems it will be up to the end customer to choose their favorite flavor of integration and middleware.  This will be an important decision for the end customer that will impact TCO (total cost of ownership).

Some of the SAP mobility partners have already decided to consolidate all of their middleware needs on the SUP. They don't want the expense of developing and supporting two different integration and middleware technology platforms and like the idea of leaving middleware issues to someone else.  If more vendors follow this move, Sybase will generate more sales and profits as a result of this trend. SAP has said they intend to operate Sybase as an independent business unit and I believe SAP can generate "new money" as a result of influencing vendors to adopt SUP.

* What I Learned About Mobility at Sapphire 2010, Part 1

*YouTube - Kevin's Video Comments

*Read the latest news and market numbers on enterprise mobility at Mobility News Weekly.

*Join the Linkedin Group, SAP Enterprise Mobility, it has over 750 members now.

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Kevin Benedict, SAP Mentor, SAP Top Contributor, Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst
CEO/Principal Consultant, Netcentric Strategies LLC
http://www.netcentric-strategies.com/
www.linkedin.com/in/kevinbenedict
http://twitter.com/krbenedict
***Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility consultant and Web 2.0 marketing expert. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.
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Shift Gears Now!!! An iPhone Application That Tells You How to Drive

Oh no!  An iPhone that tells you how to drive.  That's all I need.  The application is called DriveGain and it gives a range of visual and audio feedback on what changes are required by the driver to burn less fuel.  I wonder if it uses my father's voice?

It works with any petrol or diesel car with a manual transmission and features a database of over 8,400 European and 8,500 North American cars to choose from.

Verbal instructions given by the iPhone app range from general advice such as “try reducing your acceleration!!!!!”, to specific gear changes. While on the visual side, DriveGain provides more detailed information including current speed, level of acceleration or braking and the affect this has on fuel consumption, a smoothness score, average fuel economy reading and other eco-related statistics.  I wonder how much sarcasm is built into the app?

Is this supposed to make my driving experience more pleasurable?  "Turn left, SLOW DOWN, not third gear stupid, BRAKE NOW, do you know how much you are spending on fuel at this speed, recalcuating directions, stop hitting me."

Read more about DriveGain:
http://eu.techcrunch.com/2010/06/30/drivegain-launches-with-an-iphone-app-to-make-you-drive-more-efficiently/


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Kevin Benedict, SAP Mentor, SAP Top Contributor, Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst
CEO/Principal Consultant, Netcentric Strategies LLC
http://www.netcentric-strategies.com/
www.linkedin.com/in/kevinbenedict
http://twitter.com/krbenedict
***Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility consultant and Web 2.0 marketing expert. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.
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What I Learned about Mobility at Sapphire, Part 1

It has been about six weeks since Sapphire, and it is about time I consolidate and share my thoughts on what I learned.  I tracked down and interviewed (text interviews | video interviews) just about every management team of every mobile enterprise company that was present at Sapphire - with the notable exception of ClickSoftware, which is an SAP mobility partner and the leading provider of automated workforce management and optimization solutions for every size of service business.  I will catch them next time.

SAP's announced intent to acquire Sybase in the weeks before Sapphire forced all the mobile enterprise application vendors to quickly consider the impact on their strategies, solutions and marketing messages.  There was a bit of "testing the waters" with various marketing messages at Sapphire.  I think most of them were able to come up with an adequate marketing message.  The messages were uniformly, "We understand why SAP did it, and we plan to support the SUP (Sybase Unwired Platform) in the near future.  It will not be a problem for us.  It will give our customers more options and let us continue to focus on the business processes and mobile applications where customers get the most value." 

I think some of the mobile enterprise vendors believed their messages more than others.  I think once Sapphire was over, a number of the companies went back to the whiteboard to really understand their next steps and role in the world.

What I Learned About Mobility at Sapphire, Part 2
Stay tuned for Part 3.

Read the latest news and market numbers on enterprise mobility at Mobility News Weekly.

Join the Linkedin Group, SAP Enterprise Mobility is has over 750 members now.


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Kevin Benedict, SAP Mentor, SAP Top Contributor, Mobile Industry Analyst
CEO/Principal Consultant, Netcentric Strategies LLC
http://www.netcentric-strategies.com/
www.linkedin.com/in/kevinbenedict
http://twitter.com/krbenedict
***Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility consultant and Web 2.0 marketing expert. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.
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Mobile Enterprise Users Need Simplicity

SAP has a section of their SDN/SCN portal for enterprise mobility.  On this site they have a diagram depicting an end-to-end mobile solution.  This diagram does a good job of causing fear in just about everyone.  The diagram shows a deep stack of technology components, each with their own complex technical design and functionality.  I can just imagine an enterprise IT team gasping in distress at this diagram.  However, understanding how everything in your car works is not necessary in order to drive it.

Let me give you an example.  ClickSoftware is an SAP mobility partner and the developer of a host of workforce automation and service chain optimization applications.  They have already mobilized field services applications and implemented them with SAP.  It is now available out-of-the-box.  The complexity of the implementation has largely been removed.

If the backend business application and database is a known entity, and is already mobilized, then implementing mobile enterprise applications can be fairly simple for the end user.  SAP partners like ClickSoftware have already managed the complexity and developed applications for end users that are already integrated with SAP.

SAP's acquisition of Sybase and SAP's announced Project Gateway (an API layer for simple mobile applications) will make integrating with SAP even easier.  SAP's strategy for supporting mobile applications is clearer and vendors can focus on it.

Complexity in enterprise mobility is directly related to flexibility.  The more flexible the application the more complex.  If the developer must design and program an application to support an infinite number of different backend databases and business processes, then the solution code can be enormously complex.  If the backend business application and business processes are known in advance, and the integration strategy defined, then much of the complexity and risk can be removed.

The bottomline, there is a good reason to work with SAP mobility partners that are experienced and support specific business processes of interest to you.   You will have removed much of the complexity and risk from the project.  Look for mobility vendors that are SAP certified and have SAP customers in production environments using the business processes you want mobilized.

If you would like to discuss enterprise mobility in more depth, and/or your specific project please contact me.

If you are interested in news about the mobile industry read - Kevin's Mobility News Weekly.  This is a weekly update of the most interesting industry numbers, news and developments.

http://mobileenterprisestrategies.blogspot.com/p/kevins-mobility-news-weekly.html


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Kevin Benedict, SAP Mentor, SAP Top Contributor, Mobile Industry Analyst
CEO/Principal Consultant, Netcentric Strategies LLC
http://www.netcentric-strategies.com/
www.linkedin.com/in/kevinbenedict
http://twitter.com/krbenedict
***Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility consultant and Web 2.0 marketing expert. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.
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