The Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) is playing a key role in the forthcoming international meeting September 20-21, 2011, in Atlanta, of the Global Standards Collaboration Machine-to-Machine (M2M) Standardization Task force (GSC MSTF).  Hosted by the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), the meeting theme is “M2M Standards as Growth Enablers” and will attract industry leaders from around the world.

Created last year in Beijing at the Global Standards Collaboration (GSC)-15, the GSC M2M Standardization Task Force was charged to facilitate global coordination and harmonize M2M standardization by coordinating with a wide range of M2M players. The goal of the September meeting is to map out activities and make recommendations for future and current standardization priorities to GSC, a forum for the collaboration of the world’s leading telecommunications standards organizations and the International Telecommunication Union (ITIU).

M2M is defined as connecting two machines that are not typically carried in a user’s pocket—such as a refrigerator, vending machine or oven—where they can communicate across a network with little or no human intervention. “For example, a vending machine can let a supply system know that it’s out of product, which will then arrange for a delivery of more—without human involvement,” said Ron Bohlander, associate director for Business Operations & Commercialization at GTRI’s Information and Communications Laboratory (ICL).

• September 20 -- GTRI Conference Center. Experts from a wide range of industries will address the many dimensions of M2M communications and present their views of the impact of M2M standards on their markets.
• September 21 -- Georgia Tech Technology Square Research Building. Representatives from leading international standards groups who will focus a roundtable discussion on the future of global standardization.