More info on Cisco at ANGA 2014: https://communities.cisco.com/community/solutions/sp/news-and-announcements/blog/2014/05/02/cisco-activities-at-anga-2014-in-cologne-germany-may-20-22 For more discussions and topics around Service Providers News and Announcements, please visit our SP News and Announcements Community: http://cisco.com/go/spnewscommunity Link to blog post: https://communities.cisco.com/community/solutions/sp/news-and-announcements/blog/2014/05/13/why-europe-s-connected-life-is-about-to-get-so-much-better

1. Why Europe’s Connected Life Is About To Get So
Much Better
By Arnaud Canu, Manager, Service Provider EMEAR, Connected
Home Solutions, Cisco
One of the perks of being a partner to so many in the industry is the inclusion in the
strategic and proof-of-concept lives of our service provider customers. And if trade
shows are revelatory of that kind of progress, allow me this prediction, based on what’s
transpiring in front of and behind the scenes: This year’s ANGA is going to provide an
insight into what’s next.
As the midway point between CES and IBC, we often find that ANGA plays host to
curtain raisers or behind the scenes glimpses at what’s coming at the end of the
summer.
Allow me to begin with what’s going on in front of the curtain, so to speak: A focus on
the “Digital Life”. With households embracing remote, wireless access to cameras,
window/door sensors, smoke/carbon monoxide monitors, door locks, thermostats, water
shut-off valves, and appliance/lighting controls.
You could say that it’s almost a reflection of what AT&T has been successfully offering
to subscribers in the US, and is already becoming evident in Europe with the
deployment of 35 million smart meters in France by 2020.
Starting at ANGA, service providers across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Russia
(EMEAR) can take the same path. Why? Because we’re bringing it to the EMEAR
marketplace, and we’re calling it the Cisco Connected Life Gateway, because it’s a
complete hardware and software platform for the European connected home.
The timing is rather serendipitous, really, for three reasons: One, rising energy costs
and economic uncertainty throughout Europe are sparking interest in smart meters,
ways to reduce consumption and solutions to protect people, homes and goods.
Two, broadband penetration in certain countries is at an all-time high (Europe’s Internet
penetration will reach 75 percent - or three out of four people - by the end of 2014, the
highest in the world), which makes it all the more plausible to offer all-IP services, like

2. security, home automation, home monitoring, and solutions that enable the “Internet of
Everything.”
Third, and perhaps most notably, it’s designed with the deliberate openness that makes
for swift deployment of new products and services. In short, it lets our customers create
their own killer apps (using open standards) and launch them quickly.
New regulations on the horizon that mandate smoke detectors in all French homes?
“There’s an app for that” takes on a whole new meaning, when its backed by a box that
contains five radios and can ultimately support as many home networking and Internet
of Everything sensors as desired.
The Connected Life Gateway means that marketers and product developers can jump
into the agile and “DevOps” movement that fuels fast, forward progress -launching a few
new service features every few weeks, instead of a laboriously compiled list of 50, every
two years. It opens the door to continuous development, and everything that brings with
it. (One of our service provider partners, for instance, wryly notes that “the marketing
department” is now so focused on short-term wins, they’ve had to be reminded that
they’re still to look after the longer-term horizon, as well.)
Another reason why Europe’s digital life is about to get so much better is an applications
framework we’ve been building, which lets our service provider and partners launch
new, cloud-based services - on legacy home devices like existing Cable or Telco
gateways.
It’s part cloud, and part very thin software layer for gateways and consumer premise
equipment. It enables connected life experiences and navigation on existing gear, while
opening the door to even richer experiences, in next-generation CPE. (This one is big, if
you ask me. It opens the door to so much.)
Last but not least, and as part of an overall design goal to make our products plumbed
to move smooth and fast, from development into production, is a focus on management
and self-help tools. The goal is to help customer care representatives and end
consumers to solve problems in the shortest and most automatic ways possible.
This was intended to be a short little note on what’s happening with the “connected
home” scene, at ANGA. When there’s so much going on, brevity is a challenge! If you’re
in Cologne, please come see us. We’re in Hall 10.2 on booth J13