Page 4 - SAMENA Trends - September 2019

EDITORIAL SAMENA TRENDS

Regulatory Frameworks for IoT: Opportunities and Challenges

In this data-driven digital environment, where setting IoT security. This is primarily linked
doing business isn’t just more challenging but to the need for protecting the integrity and
more rewarding as well, many transitions are privacy of the data created from and via these
underway. Such transitions reflect how the devices.
digital communications industry is redefining
itself and how all market players conduct Because among the policy-makers’ and
business in it. Indeed, all of these requirements regulators’ great challenges is the challenge
and challenges— and many more— are just a to foster innovation and remove barriers,
few among a multitude that demand attention. this requires balanced and well-coordinated
In part this is so, because our world has only regulatory frameworks. Moreover, regulation
just started to embrace the onslaught of many should be driven by light-touch approaches
dozens of billions of devices that are on their and evidence-based restrictions, while the
way to adding a whole new meaning to the term regulators adopt the approach of acting as
complexity. Internet of Things (IoT) has only partners with the private sector, to help develop Bocar A. BA
Chief Executive Officer &
started to enter the business scene, and what the new ecosystem. Board Member
technology providers and telecom operators SAMENA Telecommunications
will do with it, more or less, will be determined Whatever we want to achieve from IoT first Council
by various strategic priorities, visions and requires us to ensure we address spectrum
readiness for future, real-life applications, and requirements and needs, accelerate investment
regulatory frameworks that can enable rather in 5G and new digital infrastructure, promote active IoT deployments are
than hinder greater innovation in the expansion the adoption of IPv6, encourage development directly contributing to or have
of the IoT ecosystem. of international standards, promote the the potential to advance the
security of IoT systems, address data privacy globally agreed UN’s Sustainable
IoT will make the vision for smart cities, issues, promote right to information by Development Goals (SDGs).
connected cars, supply chain and logistics, making public sector data freely accessible,
connected healthcare, smart manufacturing, address free data flow across borders, drive Thus given the impact that IoT
smart homes, smart agriculture, etc. — all demand in IoT through public sector adoption could generate positively toward
of which promise to save money and time, first, increase the effective and IoT-specific achieving numerous socio-
improve lives, assist in smart governance, and utilization of national ICT funds (where they economic and transformational
allocate resources efficiently, to name a few do exist) as well as encourage investment in benefits, we need to align
benefits — a reality. Billions of IoT devices, innovation, education, and training. ourselves to promptly address
predicted a long ago, to emerge by 2020 and challenges that demand
make an impact on digital systems and the To be able to achieve the above, we must foster immediate attention, and define
pace of digitization clearly point to the fact international co-ordination, collaboration, and roadmaps for tackling those
that this vision is on its way to fulfillment. engagement, ensure inter-agency and inter- challenges that require a more
sector co-ordination, and promote public- combined global-level effort in
However, IoT does face several social, private partnerships. the long run. Each market and
legal, policy challenges, technical (including Administration needs first to
spectrum availability and interoperability), IoT has risen quickly on the agenda of fine-tune its focus on what it
and security challenges. A recent report by policymakers across Europe and MEA, desires from IoT and what aspect
Gemalto indicates that a very high number of especially given the positive role it can of IoT — for example, social IoT,
consumers currently lack confidence in the play in addressing pressing societal and industrial IoT, global IoT, etc — is
security of Internet of Things devices, and thus economical challenges; so much so that an of most immediate interest.
both consumers and business organizations analysis by the World Economic Forum has
support governments getting involved in found that more than 80 percent of currently

4 SEPTEMBER 2019