Following the unparalleled success obtained in May last year, M2M FORUM, has been recognised as the single point of reference for machine–to-machine communication in Europe. WIRELESS, the Mobile Economy magazine is now launching the third edition of the event.

Attracting as many as 20 Sponsor companies and more than 600 participants, the second edition of M2M Forum provided visibility to a ‘hidden’ yet very large and – above all – strong market that did however suffer some disadvantages, i.e. the fact that businesses did not know each other well and lacked a general perspective on the industry who’s who.

Highly aggressive Italian companies as well as large multinationals have been showing increasing interest in this conference, the only one of its kind in Europe for size and importance. M2M Forum is a privileged opportunity for them to get the picture of the market as it is now and to understand future scenarios of this vital technological industry.

“With over 1,300 companies operating in the industry, Italy is the most advanced country for M2M applications”

Unlike the kind of mobile economy that has too often been promised and announced but hardly put into practice, right from the start, the area of machine-to-machine communications afforded through GSM and GPRS networks has proved to be a solid, ever-growing business, one that generates sales and revenues for manufacturers, integrators, service providers and network operators Businesses meeting up at M2M FORUM 2004 will include: manufacturers, system integrators and service providers involved in the development of WIRELESS products, services and solutions based on machine-to-machine communication.

Widespread use of WIRELESS technologies (GSM/GPRS, W-Lan, Bluetooth) and lower transmission equipment costs have meant that a large number of manufacturers have been able to connect groups of “machines” installed throughout the country (i.e. counters, theft-deterrent devices, parking meters, vendors) to a single remote control centre.

The revolution set in motion by M2M communication has first affected professional equipment and valuable products, i.e. cars, but is bound to reach the consumer world as the new technology becomes gradually incorporated into everyday products such as domestic anti-intrusion systems, air conditioning systems, and individual ECGs.

M2M technology will also change business-to-customer relations – from basic selling to gradual delivery of value added services.

M2M brings telecommunications and IT together to achieve the automation and integration of equipment within corporate information systems with a view to generating value added services

The event that thanks to the partnerships with some international specialized newspapers will count on the presence of many foreign participants has now become the European meeting point of the “M2M Community” and it has gained the interest of the main players (Vendors, System Integrators, Carriers) that are present on the market. The Forums will also be the occasion to make the point and present, on the Italian market, all the M2M novelties showcased at the GSM WORLD CONGRESS and at the CEBIT.