Amazon, Apple, Google Eyeing Different Goals With IoT, Says IDC

In a period of slowing consumer interest in smart home technology, industry watchers are anxious to see how the big three Internet companies -- Amazon, Apple and Google -- will fit into the evolving landscape. Responding to an audience question on the role of the three Internet majors, Jonathan Gaw, IDC research manager-connected home told a recent IDC IoT webcast that Amazon is doing some “interesting things,” specifically with the Alexa voice engine. Amazon is partnering with home IoT service providers and others to integrate Alexa into their services "and we’re going to continue to see that,” Gaw said. Understanding the three companies’ impact on the market will vary according to each’s end goals and “what makes them tick,” Gaw said. Amazon, for instance, sells devices on its e-commerce site, but “that’s not who they are,” he said. Amazon wants to convert more customers into becoming Prime users, with Alexa integration a means to that end, he said. IDC expects Alexa to be integrated into non-Amazon devices “fairly soon,” possibly as soon as this quarter or next, Gaw said. Devices from third-party vendors with Alexa integration will offer “more end points” to reach potential Prime customers, Gaw said. Similarly, Apple and Google sell consumers devices but also have a bigger picture in mind, he said. Google’s ultimate goal is to understand end users better and use data about their behavior to sell targeted advertising and services, said Gaw. Apple “is about the iPhone,” and its IoT solutions are about tying customers to the iOS platform and securing their loyalty to the iPhone ecosystem, he said. Gaw’s advice for IoT companies wanting to work with the Internet big three: Understand “where you help them and where they help you, and what is yours and what is theirs,” Gaw said. “It helps you decide which platforms you want to engage with and how you want to engage with them.”