This year, we’ve been celebrating 20 years of M2M and IoT innovation. As we come to the end of 2016, we wanted to look back at the achievements and milestones from the last 20 years with a special holiday calendar. As well as learning about how much has changed, you have the chance to win a range of technology prizes including an Adidas connected soccer ball, a GoPro Hero4 Session active camera and a Fuji Instant camera. 20 questions and 20 chances to win are unlocked every day in December until the 23rd.
20 years ago, our IoT/M2M team was still a part of Siemens, working in Wireless Modules. It later separated to create Cinterion, which was in turn acquired by Gemalto in 2010. Since 1996, we’ve extended our portfolio from simply building ruggedized wireless modules to providing a wide range of solutions and services to enable our customers to Connect, Secure and Monetize IoT. These not only connect machines, but secure the data being transferred and help organizations realize ROI from them. We’ve watched as M2M transformed into the wider IoT ecosystem that we now know – and have just shipped our 100 millionth module. It certainly has been an eventful 20 years, and we’d like to thank our customers and partners who have come with us on the journey so far.
Here are six of the most momentous developments that brought us to where we are today:
- 1996: The revolution starts with the launch of the world´s first cellular Machine to Machine communications module (called M1). The M1 allows machines to communicate over cellular wireless networks for the first time.
- 2003: As modules became smaller and able to transfer larger amounts of data more quickly, the also became smarter. Gemalto was the first to bring Java support to modules, enabling quicker and smarter development.
- 2008: Gemalto introduces the first M2M-optimized SIM card, called MIM (Machine Identification Module). It is robust and ruggedized to fit the specificities of industrial environments, and offers a lifespan to last up to 10 years (contrary to SIM cards planned for consumer communications, which get exchanged much earlier).
- 2011: Gemalto launches SensorLogic´s Application Enablement Platform, the first M2M platform to normalize data from any device and transform it into easy to understand business intelligence. It also allows quick and easy new application deployment for machines already in the field.
- 2013: Gemalto launches the world´s first 4G LTE M2M Modules for automotive and industrial applications, which will be followed by further development with LTE Cat.1 and LTE-M modules for IoT-optimized connectivity.
- 2015: As hacking and cyber-attacks become more prevalent, Gemalto launches the Cinterion Secure Element, providing a foundation of trust and a framework for secure M2M IoT architectures.
To learn more about these and many more developments in M2M and IoT, check out the calendar today and remember to check back until the 23rd for more chances to win. And remember that you can still answer questions from previous days that you missed for more chances to win – every correct answer gives you another entry in the prize draw.
So here’s to the next 20 years! We look forward to helping more organizations connect, secure and monetize their IoT solutions, whatever new challenges and opportunities emerge as the industrial landscape continues to change. If you want to read more about navigating the complex ecosystem around the Industrial Internet of Things, download our new guide to IoT success here: http://m2m-communication.gemalto.com/Connect.Secure.Monetize.
