Seven major telecoms standards bodies have joined forces on a new initiative to develop global specifications for M2M technologies.
 
A new organisation called ‘oneM2M’ has been created to develop a “common platform” to be used by communications service providers to support applications and services across a range of vertical sectors, including ehealth. Other vertical sectors identified by the organisation include smart grids, connected cars, enterprise supply chain, home automation and energy management, and public safety.
 
It is estimated that there could be as many as 50 billion M2M connections by 2020, while many operators are currently optimising their networks to support M2M services.
 
According to the organisation, the initial goal of oneM2M will be to “confront the critical need for a common M2M Service Layer, which can be readily embedded within various hardware and software, and relied upon to connect the myriad of devices in the field with M2M application servers worldwide.”
 
There are seven so-called Standards Development Organisations (SDOs) contributing to the project: the Association of Radio Industries and Businesses (ARIB) and the Telecommunication Technology Committee (TTC) of Japan; the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) and the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) of the USA; the China Communications Standards Association (CCSA); the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI); and the Telecommunications Technology Association (TTA) of Korea.