Tag: Zuora

Episode 359: Meet the man who “invented” the IoT back in 1985

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has finally released its plans for securing the IoT, so we discuss what the plans are for a consumer-oriented cybersecurity label. We then give a quick update on the Sigfox receivership and Intel’s plan to purchase Tower Semiconductor before spending a large chunk of time on Apple’s AirTags and how ubiquitous and cheap trackers change the game for privacy. We share new subscription plan revenue data for the manufacturing sector and for IoT devices, and unsurprisingly the folks at Zuora are optimistic. We then share some details on Anthony Levandowski’s plans to build a peer-to-peer cellular network for self-driving vehicles that looks a lot like Helium, and a sad story about bionic eyes made by a company that is going out of business. We end by answering a listener question about smart controls for 220-volt or 240-volt outdoor heaters.

Apple is trying to prevent folks from abusing AirTags to stalk people.

Our guest this week is Peter Lewis, who was a co-founder of Cellular One and the originator of the term “Internet of Things.” Lewis coined the term and described the connection between wireless sensors, cellular networks, and the internet, all the way back in 1985 during a speech he gave to the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation 15th Annual Legislative Weekend in Washington, D.C. This week, you can hear the relevant segment of the speech and he shares why he was so eager to get things connected to the Internet 37 years ago. He also talks about what surprised him as the IoT really gained ground and discusses what he’s doing today. This is a great history lesson that everyone should know.

Hosts: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guest: Peter Lewis, originator of the term “Internet of Things”
Sponsors: Somfy and Pantacor

  • What does NIST want for consumer IoT security? We tell you.
  • Who’s bidding for Sigfox?
  • Why Apple’s AirTags are such a problem
  • The IoT was created by a cellular executive to gain new subscribers
  • What the creator of the phrase “internet of things” didn’t see coming

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Episode 310: Thanks to the IoT, everything’s a subscription now

We kick off this week’s show with the news of SmartThings device depreciation and Amazon’s Alexa Conversations feature finally making it to general availability. After that, we talk about the rising revenue from subscriptions in the consumer IoT and in manufacturing based on a new survey from Zuora. Then we discuss how police departments feel about connected doorbells such as Ring and a new consumer privacy law in Virginia. Both NXP and Silicon Labs shared news at the embedded world event this week, while rumors about a new Nest display hit the press. We closed with conversations on Tuya filing to go public, Beam’s funding for connected dental insurance, and Kevin’s review of some Meross HomeKit outlets. On the IoT Podcast Hotline, we answered a listener’s question about a connected doorbell that doesn’t collect video data.

Zuora’s end of ownership report looks at the increasing consumer interest in subscription services.

Our guest this week is Tien Tzuo, CEO of Zuora. He’s on the show to explain why the ownership model is going away and how companies can make the shift to charging subscriptions for products ranging from cars to steam traps. We talk about how subscriptions and software updates change marketing, finance, and innovation inside companies with Tzuo offering some excellent examples. We then talk about how to set pricing, and what that might look like in the years ahead. Tzuo thinks the cell phone providers are a good model, but I hate my carrier’s opaque pricing. There’s a lot of food for thought here.

Hosts: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guest: Tien Tzuo, CEO of Zuora
Sponsor: Very

  • SmartThings’ changes make now a good time to evaluate other hubs
  • Virginia’s new privacy law is a lighter version of California’s CCPA
  • NXP’s secure IoT chips are coming and gigahertz MCUs are here
  • How selling subscriptions changes the way a company thinks about innovations
  • Consumer trust and systemic thinking are essential to building a subscription service

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