Nobody wants to talk about M2M and SCADA when they could talk about IoT (internet of things), but business and vertical sectors, not eye-catching consumer applications, will be the bread and butter of connected device systems for years to come. Hence why Google has set up a new Glass at Work initiative to encourage the development of industrial apps for its smart spectacles ‘ this approach is far more likely to deliver uptake, revenues and actual usefulness in the short term than consumer functionality.
Profits from the IoT will flow to service providers which build on existing, proven models in vertical markets, and to the vendors which enable them to extend the usefulness of their systems. There will be plenty of new connected devices and applications grabbing the headlines and the R&D budgets, and many will be exciting, but any consumer-focused IoT will struggle to deliver hard profits until user acceptance is far higher, and form factors far more evolved.
It is far easier to imagine Google Glass ‘ outside the small base of hobbyists ‘ being useful in applications such as emergency services than as everyday wear for consumers. The search giant said some businesses have already created custom applications using Glass and its new program is designed to expand those use cases.
Some early examples include a firefighting navigation app for use when visibility is reduced by smoke, and a new way for doctors to view patient charts interactively, drawing in data from many sources. Google said the Washington Capitals ice hockey team had partnered with APX Labs to create a spectator experience with real time statistics, instant replay and different camera angles brought to fans via Glass (headsets could be hired or lent at the ground, like 3D glasses in a cinema). And Schlumberger, the world’s largest oilfield services company, partnered with Wearable Intelligence on safety apps for field teams.
Such uses have real value and a business case attached, and could justify the high cost of the wearable displays (currently $1,500, though of course volume would drive that down over time). Many consumer apps would be addressed by Android Wear tools as well as by Glass’s own developer framework, whereas the Work section requires more specialized inputs and vertical market expertise.