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Bruce Schneier writes in The Atlantic:
In theory, the Internet of Things—the connected network of tiny computers inside home appliances, household objects, even clothing—promises to make your life easier and your work more efficient. These computers will communicate with each other and the Internet in homes and public spaces, collecting data about their environment and making changes based on the information they receive. In theory, connected sensors will anticipate your needs, saving you time, money, and energy.
Except when the companies that make these connected objects act in a way that runs counter to the consumer's best interests...
After giving examples of the Philips Hue light bulb and Keurig coffee pod DRM issues, Schneier explains how these companies rely on the anti-circumvention provision of the DMCA law to stop competitors from reverse-engineering proprietary standards. He continues:
Because companies can enforce anti-competitive behavior this way, there's a litany of things that just don't exist, even though they would make life easier for consumers in significant ways. You can't have custom software for your cochlear implant, or your programmable thermostat, or your computer-enabled Barbie doll.
[...] As the Internet of Things becomes more prevalent, so too will this kind of anti-competitive behavior—which undercuts the purpose of having smart objects in the first place.
[...] We can't have this when companies can cut off compatible products, or use the law to prevent competitors from reverse-engineering their products to ensure compatibility across brands. For the Internet of Things to provide any value, what we need is a world that looks like the automotive industry, where you can go to a store and buy replacement parts made by a wide variety of different manufacturers. Instead, the Internet of Things is on track to become a battleground of competing standards, as companies try to build monopolies by locking each other out.
Related:
Keurig Cup DRM cracked
Philips Backs Down Over Light Bulb DRM
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 30 2015, @03:35AM
Wikipedia: Specialty Equipment Market Association [wikipedia.org]
SEMA isn't just an organization that has a huge car show in Vegas every November where every car looks like it came out of The Fast and The Furious or your local circle track or dragstrip. They support the aftermarket modification and repair of motor vehicles. Among SEMA's original founders were the people behind Cragar wheels, Mooneyes, and Edelbrock. Without SEMA, car owners would probably be stuck buying car parts directly from the vendor.
The FTC also has regulations related to the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act [ftc.gov] that make it illegal for a manufacturer or dealer to deny warranty claims simply due to an aftermarket part being used, or that a non-dealer performed the work.
Of course, proprietary lock-in is the dream of every new "disruptive innovator" trying to spin up an economy. It's (mostly) too late for manufacturers of PCs to try to create a locked-in ecosystem, but the IoT fad is doing its best to create lock-in. Between this lock-in threat and the myriad security vulnerabilities, the best advice you can give someone thinking about jumping into the IoT fad is to avoid it like the plague, and think of a traditional way to solve the problem, such as a cheaper timer-based digital thermostat, or using a pen and paper in the morning to track what groceries need to be bought on the drive home from work.