Ericsson is seeking to shape the debate about the ‘internet of things’ as it eyes the opportunities for its platforms to run billions, rather than millions, of wireless devices. It has set up an initiative called City Index, focused on smart cities, and is working with the United Nations and other bodies to examine technologies for sustainable and mobile urban living. In the first Index report, Stockholm ‘ capital of Ericsson’s own homeland of course ‘ followed by London and Singapore, ranked as the top three cities in terms of mature ICT underpinning sustainable progress.
The base for the first Networked Society City Index was just 31 cities, but Ericsson aims to expand it to all 450 metropolises round the world which have over one million inhabitants.
The firm is calling on industry players and academic institutions to join City Index and its broader smart city projects, which will measure ICT maturity in economic, social and environmental development and, more broadly, look at solutions for business, government and citizen services and mobility.
The launch of the Index report came at the end of an Ericsson-hosted thinktank event called NEST Networked Society Forum. Other concrete results were the launch of an Intelligent Transport Initiative and a three-year partnership with UN-Habitat, the UN agency targeted with promoting ‘socially, economically and environmentally sustainable cities leveraging ICT investments’.
The two organizations will work on collaborative research and initiatives to feed into city leaders and policy makers. Ericsson will contribute technology, consulting and big data elements, and the effort will track trends, promote public awareness and produce case studies.
The two-day NEST summit involved participants from government, urban planning, public opinion and telecoms sectors, along with Ericsson’s CEO Hans Vestberg. Other key issues are identified as traffic congestion, CO2 emissions, residential overcrowding and refuse collection.
Vestberg said: “With one million people moving into cities every week, urban life represents some of the world’s greatest challenges and opportunities. ICT is an integral and natural part of everything we do in this urbanized world, and Ericsson has once again gathered a leading group of thinkers and doers to help point the way forward for our industry.”
He added: ‘If we can bring together representatives from public and private domains, we will surely find unexpected, innovative ways to have a positive impact on city life.”
Another key outcome, the Intelligent Transport Initiative, is in response to data such as the EU’s findings that about 1% of GDP is lost annually as a result of traffic congestion. A study from the US calculates that 70m hours per year are spent finding a parking space while traffic accidents kill nearly 1.3m people a year worldwide. The Ericsson project aims to incorporate
road authorities, research institutes, public transport operators, logistics providers and service providers to analyze connected transport from every angle, taking into account new technologies such as connected and even driverless cars.
Vestberg continued: “Mobile communication is expected to reach nine billion subscriptions by 2019. This would never happen without unity and collaboration across the entire ecosystem. We need a similar drive now that we will see industries such as transport take advantage of mobility, broadband, and cloud. We’ve seen wonderful innovations by leading companies but in order for these ideas to scale across the globe, we need to collaborate.”