Internet of Things, Cloud and Big Data Intersect By @MetraTech | @ThingsExpo [#IoT]

The concept of Internet of Things (IoT) is not exactly new, but when it intersects with other buzzworthy technologies such as Cloud and Big Data, combined they reach fever pitch. The Internet of Things was first coined in 1999 by Kevin Ashton who co-founded the Auto-ID Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), which created a global standard system for RFID and other sensors. He is given credit for the term Internet of Things to describe a system where the Internet is connected to the physical world via ubiquitous sensors. But prior to this auspicious start, we can trace the concept of a network of smart devices to 1982 when a Coke machine at Carnegie Mellon University was modified by industrious students to become the first Internet connected appliance. And the application? To tell students when cold soda was available. Although in technology and Internet years, 1982 is ancient, what has not changed is the basic human need for the application-providing reliable, fast and actionable information to drive a decision. Fast forward to 2014 and analyst firm IDC forecasts that the IoT market will grow to $8.9 trillion by 2020 with anywhere between 30 to 50 billion connected autonomous things, making the potential growth opportunities staggering as sensors, technology and networking come together to enable things to swap information and usher in the new application economy.

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